Nickelodeon (Sub-Saharan Africa)

Nickelodeon (commonly shortened as Nick) is a South African 24-hour television channel owned by Paramount Networks EMEAA. The channel was launched on July 1, 2008. North Africa receives the Arabic-language version of the channel Nickelodeon MENA.

Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon logo (circa 2023)[a]
CountrySouth Africa
Broadcast areaSub-Saharan Africa
HeadquartersJohannesburg, South Africa
Programming
Language(s)English
Amharic (Ethiopia)
Picture formatHDTV 1080i
Ownership
OwnerParamount Networks EMEAA (Paramount Global)
Multichoice (GOtv and DStv version only)
Sister channelsMTV
Nick Jr.
Nicktoons
MTV Base
Comedy Central
BET
BET International
History
LaunchedJune 12, 1999; 25 years ago (1999-06-12) (block)
July 1, 2008; 16 years ago (2008-07-01) (channel)
Links
Websitewww.nickelodeonafrica.com
Availability
Terrestrial
StarSat/StarTimesChannel 357 (recently removed)
GOtvChannel 62
DStvChannel 305, Channel 312 (Southern Africa except South Africa)
Zuku TVChannel 640
AzamTVChannel 220

Unlike other Nickelodeon feeds and much like the German and Dutch feeds, the end credits on shows (except on interstitial shows) never appear. They were replaced by short credits including the show name, production year and production company and much like the European feed, the promos and bumpers do not contain any text other than the Nickelodeon logo (prior to 2023 in the case of promos). This is also includes Nick Jr. since it launched on Nicktoons since 2021.

History

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Logo used 2010, used concurrently with the 2023 logo.
 
Nick logo for short used as the secondary on-screen bug from 2010 to 2023

Before it was a channel, it was a block on the South African children's channel KTV and Koowee. Nickelodeon was launched as a channel on July 1, 2008.[1] In 2012, it received new bumpers, promo, and continuity. Later in 2014, Nicktoons was launched as a replacement for the discontinued Kidsco alongside Nick Jr., another channel from Viacom (now Paramount). Nick Jr and Nicktoons share the same website as Nickelodeon until Nick Jr. launched its own website.

In June 2017, the Kenya Film Classification Board (KCFB), headed by CEO Ezekiel Mutua, ordered a ban on six cartoons airing on Cartoon Network Africa, Nickelodeon Africa and Nicktoons Africa for allegedly promoting LGBT themes to minors. The shows affected are the currently-running Cartoon Network shows Adventure Time, Clarence and Steven Universe, in addition to the already ended Nickelodeon shows Hey Arnold! and The Legend of Korra, and the currently running Nickelodeon cartoon The Loud House, although The Loud House returned to Nicktoons Africa in late 2021, similar to that of Cartoon Network Africa with Adventure Time and Disney Channel Africa with The Owl House.[2]

In 2018, Viacom merged official websites of Southeast Asian, Middle Eastern and African versions of Nickelodeon into nick.tv. Along the way Nickelodeon adapted two feeds with the South African feed airing series banned from the channel such as The Loud House and Bubble Guppies.

On March 5, 2019, Nickelodeon (South Africa only) along with Comedy Central, BET, MTV and MTV Base were available in HD on DStv. The Nickelodeon channel in South Africa has a separate feed from the rest of Africa, with different programming and schedule.

In 2020, the channel relaunched its Nick Jr programming block, airing from 5 a.m (CAT) to 7 a.m (CAT) daily (previously 5 a.m (CAT) to 6:30 a.m (CAT) on weekdays and 5 a.m (CAT) to 7:00 a.m (CAT) on weekends). However, the block is not available on the South African feed.

On May 17, 2021, NickMusic was launched as a TV program on NickToons, airing on weekdays at 4 p.m.(CAT).

In July 2022, Nickelodeon was made available on Startimes ON in selected countries as a supplement of DreamWorks Channel which was removed from StarTimes and StarSat on February 17, 2022, and relaunched on DStv on March 18, 2022.

On August 1, 2023, the channel rebranded to its current era nearly 5 months after its rebrand in the U.S.

Feeds

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Nickelodeon Africa is divided into two feeds for its broadcast in the Sub-Saharan African region with each feed carrying its own schedule and programming.

  • Feed 1: South Africa (Its headquarters is based from Johannesburg, South Africa).
  • Feed 2: Rest of Sub-Saharan Africa (its headquarters is based from Nigeria).

Programming

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Current programming

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Shorts

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  • Athleticious (2022–present) (PG)
  • Zelly Go (2020–present) [c] (PG)

Reruns

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Nick Jr. programming

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Former programming

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Nick Jr. programming

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Sister channels

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Nicktoons

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Nicktoons logo

Nicktoons Africa is a sister-channel of Nickelodeon that airs reruns of animated series from Nickelodeon along with other cartoons. The channel was launched on 30 September 2014 as a replacement to Kidsco on DStv.

Nick Jr.

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Nick Jr. logo

Nick Jr. Africa is a sister-channel of Nickelodeon that is aimed at pre-school children. The channel was launched on 30 September 2014. The channel also has an Ethiopian feed.[4]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ The logo's wordmark has been in use since 2010. Additionally, this logo is a variant meant to be used for white backgrounds; the main variant has a white wordmark in conjunction with a fully orange splat.
  2. ^ Still airing on the South African feed and on Nicktoons
  3. ^ a b c d e f Previously seen on Nicktoons
  4. ^ a b c d e Now on Nicktoons
  5. ^ a b c d Still airing on the South African feed
  6. ^ Previously seen on Nicktoons and Nick Jr.
  7. ^ Now on BET
  8. ^ South African feed only
  9. ^ a b Now on Nick Jr.

References

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  1. ^ "Nickelodeon celebrates birthday with multiplay in Africa". balancingact-africa.com. April 16, 2010. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
  2. ^ Dahir, Abdi Latif (June 17, 2017). "Some Nickelodeon kid cartoons have been banned in Kenya for "glorifying homosexuality"". Quartz. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
  3. ^ "What to Watch on DStv Kids in July 2022 - Highlights". Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  4. ^ "Details: MultiChoice and ViacomCBS Networks Africa Launch Nick Jr in Ethiopia". July 2020.
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