Discovery Reveals 2022 Ambitions
November 10, 2021 
22 Comments
DISCOVERY UNVEILS BOLD PLANS FOR NEW ZEALAND AUDIENCES IN 2022: 70% INCREASE IN LOCAL PRODUCTION, EXPANSION OF NEWS AND THREENOW AND LAUNCH OF TWO NEW FREE-TO-AIR TV CHANNELS
10 November, 2021 – Discovery, Inc. has revealed the first of its ambitious 2022 plans for New Zealand audiences, with a 70 per cent increase in local content, the launch of two new channels and the further expansion of its news offering and ThreeNow.
Glen Kyne, Senior Vice President and General Manager ANZ, says, “The transition to Discovery ANZ is complete and the network’s success in 2021 has paved the way for this new chapter in New Zealand television. We’ve never been better placed to grow our market position and give viewers a huge amount of content they love.
“We’re growing our audience reach with NZ’s largest and most diverse mix of free-to-air and pay TV channels and building a more compelling ThreeNow and advertisers will reap the rewards of our first-class local content, growing viewership and powerful brands including the new Gusto and Rush.
“Content remains at the heart of what we do and it’s exciting to be part of a global creator that itself is growing exponentially around the world. In 2022, viewers can expect our most compelling local production slate ever along with more of Discovery’s great international formats and talent.”
2022 will deliver the most ambitious programming slate in flagship channel Three’s history. Discovery’s investment in local productions will deliver a 70 per cent increase.
Viewers can look forward to brand-new programmes including much-loved foodie Nadia Lim taking audiences inside her rural life in the all-new Nadia’s Farm, a deserving New Zealand town gets a new look in My Town Makeover and Kiwi lives will be transformed when they undergo an extreme home decluttering journey in Sort Your Life Out. Brand-new NZ original format Tracked will see teams of two from around the world race through epic and harsh NZ landscapes to reach the evacuation zone and the helicopter out, before they are caught by a group of elite trackers.
In 2022, Three brings back the much-loved Masterchef NZ for the first time in six years. Audiences will also see returning series, including ratings winner The Masked Singer NZ and the long-anticipated Dancing With The Stars NZ, along with smash-hit Match Fit, the compelling Patrick Gower: On series, David Lomas Investigates and an all-new 7 Days. New Zealand’s favourite DIY show will also return for its 10th season and the biggest battle yet when audience favourites from past seasons return for a second chance in The Block: Redemption. Patrick Gower: On, David Lomas Investigates and 7 Days are made with the help of New Zealand On Air. Match Fit is made with the help of New Zealand On Air and Te Māngai Pāho.
Gusto will launch as New Zealand’s fourth primary free-to-air channel in March 2022, transforming the former Choice TV, to offer Kiwis ‘A Better Everyday’ with both local and international entertainment content and the latest news from Newshub. Launch titles include Changing Rooms UK, Big Family Farm and Finding Alice. The world premiere of NZ production Great Southern Truckers will also be the first of a number of planned local programmes. Gusto will appeal to viewers with an enthusiasm for life and offers more content they love – lifestyle and factual TV, the best of British drama, documentaries and real life stories, world renowned game shows and powerful films.
In March 2022, Discovery will also launch a second new free-to-air TV channel Rush. A perfect partner to Bravo, Rush will offer viewers unapologetically high-energy shows across the popular survival and adventure genres – including motoring, and off-the-grid living. Launch titles include Wheeler Dealers, Man vs. Wild, Street Outlaws and Treehouse Masters, which will feed the growing appetite for big, bold entertainment full of action and adventure.
Next year, Discovery’s award-winning news and current affairs expands its ambitious news footprint by introducing Newshub Live at 8pm on Gusto. The tightly-curated 30 minute bulletin will focus on the big stories of the day, including interviews with newsmakers on the day’s hot topics. Newshub Late on Three will be reshaped with its own identity and Kiwis can expect to see more prime time news specials. And as announced earlier today, Melissa Chan-Green will join Ryan Bridge as co-host of the all-new AM, which will be reshaped as a best-in-class television morning news programme. The new AM Early will satisfy the 5:30am audience by serving up local and international news, with a focus on business issues. On weekends, the newly appointed Laura Tupou will join Tom McRae in presenting the Newshub Live at 6pm bulletin.
Discovery also announced further expansion plans to transform ThreeNow into a standalone video entertainment destination, offering enhanced capability, a better user experience and more content than ever before.
Commissioned exclusively for ThreeNow is a brand new season of the NZ-developed reality hit Heartbreak Island. The series, which has been a hit for Discovery audiences globally, begins filming at an island location early in 2022.
ThreeNow will also be the On-Demand home for shows from our five free-to-air channels Three, Gusto, Rush, Bravo and HGTV.
DISCOVERY ANZ TO BE CARBON ZERO WITHIN FIVE YEARS
Discovery ANZ is proud to announce it has been Toitū carbonreduce certified by Toitū Envirocare, New Zealand’s leading environmental certifications provider, as it commits to being a carbon zero business within five years, by 2026.
Discovery ANZ will make further announcements in 2022.
Casting calls are underway for Masterchef, Heartbreak Island, Tracked and Sort Your Life Out and can be found at:
www.threenow.co.nz/masterchefnz
www.threenow.co.nz/heartbreakisland
www.threenow.co.nz/sortyourlifeout
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November 10, 2021 at 12:15 pm
Will TVNZ come soon enough?
Unfortunately that leaves me to avoid Three due to the excessive reality and local content. I’m after scripted content like drama and comedy. These networks don’t seem to understand
Is The Edge TV and The Breeze TV gone Philip? Exciting news for news junkies especially with the 5.30am start and 8pm News. I wonder if Breakfast will start at 5.30am as well. Lots of investment for Three, can only see good things ahead for Three NZ.
WOW, what do you think Philip? I see no mention of Discovery+ but I wonder if they are waiting until Warner Bros. Discovery becomes reality then they can add Warner Bros shows and movies and not forgetting HBO Max. Exciting ?
TVNZ’s presentation is next Thursday.
The Discovery Warner merger was mentioned at the end of the presentation. It was very brief and vague, but with the clear message that Discovery NZ would benefit big-time.
That’s right re Edge and Breeze, Leo. They go as part of the rationalisation and consolidation and will be “sunset” over the first half of next year. Here’s the new Discovery NZ channel line-up for 2022:
FTA:
Three
Three +1
Gusto
Gusto +1
Bravo
Bravo +1
HGTV
Rush
Pay:
Discovery Channel
TLC
ID
Living
Turbo
Animal Planet
Digital:
ThreeNow
Not holding much hope for this new lineup. Choice was the best FTA channel with a quirky but watchable lineup until Disco took over Three. What were previously low-key adverts turned into the crass commercialism seen on Three. And no mention of HD? To invest in new channels in 2021 and not broadcast in HD is criminal.
There is some good news for you, thx1138: Gusto will be in HD.
That’s an interesting comment about Warner Bros from Discovery, Philip. It sounds like they have got HUGE plans for when it becomes official. So excited for 2022 ?
Will ThreeNow ever be upgraded to HD and 5.1 surround sound support? It’s crazy how nobody supports these together as it’s an industry standard at a minimum. Now it’s 4k and Dolby Atmos which is nowhere to been seen by any local broadcasters, even Sky is refusing to put All Blacks in 4k.
Sad to see The Edge & The Breeze TV go as the last official music channels apart from Juice TV on Ch200. Will MediaWorks purchase frequencies on Channel 19 & 20 to continue airing The Edge and Breeze TV, Philip?
I find it rather misleading that they advertise and promote “new channels” yet they are just rebranded existing ones. I thought they were actually adding more channels to the existing lineup.
Gusto HD is a glimmer of hope 🙂
I doubt it, Leo. Discovery will want to use those for its new channels, especially as Gusto in HD will need more bandwidth than predecessor Choice.
Isn’t The Edge TV in HD, so they won’t need to find more bandwidth for Gusto if they are just dropping The Edge TV in its place, unless Rush is HD as well.
No plans for Rush to be in HD, Leo, which is a shame given the outdoorsy appeal of the channel. So it will be a straightforward swap, with Gusto/Rush taking over the Edge/Breeze frequencies.
It is a bit of a bummer they aren’t putting Rush in HD. Hopefully at some point another music channel fills the void left behind, once The Edge/Breeze depart. I’m looking forward to the extra news bulletins they are launching, one has to wonder if they will go the whole hog and launch Newshub 24 on Freeview but wishes aren’t always granted.
Vice is closing on C13! I just noticed, maybe one of these new channels can get a bump up the EPG.
Is this true? Is Vice closing Philip?
Sounds like it, Leo. I’m not up to speed as I don’t cover SD channels.
Vice is closing all their linear TV properties worldwide to focus on online.