ABSTRACT
The well-resourced TV1 serviced English- and Afrikaans-language speakers, while the less important TV2 broadcast in the Nguni languages and TV3 in the Sotho languages. Equally disconcerting, the remaining language groups were left on the periphery, less visible in the shadows of the television broadcasting hierarchy of channels instituted by the apartheid regime: even sports was prioritised them in 1985 with the launch of TV4, which broadcast sport and entertainment content. Evolving technological developments which shift broadcasting control more squarely into the hands of the audience, and support multiple channels on multiple platforms, are beginning to alter the traditional power dynamics between broadcasters and their audiences. It is the audiences who now pre-select, pay and view programmes when they want, and decide to skip or delay adverts as they traverse multiple platforms, mindful that there is insufficient content to fill all the channels.
