THE tagline for e.tv’s OpenView HD is “you pay once and you enjoy free TV for ever”. After launching last year, the channel has ushered in a wide variety of shows, from reality to locally made movies. So far the bouquet offers 18 channels and the latest addition is Relevant TV, its first Christian channel.
Founded and run by Joshua McCauley, the channel will rival other offerings across the South African TV landscape.
“Relevant TV is a Christian channel with a difference. It will bring great content which will motivate and uplift the viewer. We strive to bring quality to the Christian TV market that has not yet been experienced in South Africa,” said McCauley.
McCauley is the son of well known clergyman, Ray McCauley, who established Rhema church.
Relevant TV is intended to be a non-denominational Christian lifestyle TV channel that will look at the spiritual needs of Christians from all walks of life. The main target market of the channel is young adults, although it will cater for other groups as well.
A number of churches have partnered with Relevant TV so they will bring quality shows to balance the local versus international content scale. Shows will include music content, talk shows, live events and the like.
“We are proud to welcome Relevant TV to the OpenView HD family. This new addition allows us to offer a Christian TV experience that is in line with our diverse audience and quality programming,” said the managing director of Platco Digital, Maxwell Nonge.
That said, Relevant TV comes into a local landscape where Christian material is abundant so it can expect tough competition.
We have One Gospel on DStv which has done very well over the years. The SABC has its own impressive selection of shows that usually come out on a Sunday to cater for the non-church-going Christian. Some of the shows include Rebecca Malope’s It’s Gospel Time and Tshepo Maseko’s Gospel Classics.
Former Idols SA winner, Khaya Mthethwa, is on Mzansi Magic hosting a show called Gospel Alive. This is another of the many that are showing on major channels.
Soweto TV, too, has some Christian content, where the likes of the controversial Pastor Mboro are local heroes.
If your decoder is not paid for, there are a few channels that you can still access free and most of these are Christian channels. These include God TV and Spirit Word Ministries and their production quality is world class.
With all this competition in mind, it remains to be seen just how well Relevant TV will do.
• Relevant TV is on channel 253.