TV shake-up
From tomorrow, Israel’s channels are going to change
Even if you don’t own a TV, it would be hard to miss the upcoming major changes in the Israeli television market.
Cities around the country are plastered with billboards marking the shift, which is going into effect on Wednesday, November 1. And commercials have been running nonstop on TV advertising the shifts and movements that are about to take place.
What exactly is going on? And where will all your favorite shows end up?
The biggest change is the splitting up of Israel’s famed Channel 2. The station, which until now has been broadcast on channel 22, will split in half and end up on channels 12 and 13. Shows that were created by Keshet will be on 12, while shows made by Reshet will be on 13. Channel 10, meanwhile, which was until now actually broadcast on channel 10, is moving to channel 14, and will restylize itself as “Eser” (the Hebrew word for 10, as opposed to the number 10). The public broadcaster Kan will stay on Channel 11, where it has been since it hit the airwaves in May. Have you kept up so far? Great. As to the why: back when Moshe Kahlon was finance minister in 2011, he passed a law mandating the split of the two channels by November 1, 2017. The move was part of a series of reforms aimed at increasing competition in the TV market.
So where can you find your favorite shows from November 1 and on? Anything you love from Channel 10 – Gav Hauma, Baby Boom, Hatzinor, Gidi and Aharon’s Wonderful Journey and more – will be found on channel 14.
Shows from Keshet – which include Master Chef, Kochav Haba, Kippat Barzel, Bake Off Israel, Eretz Nehederet and Dancing with the Stars – will end up on channel 12.
Shows from Reshet – like Big Brother, The X Factor, The Amazing Race, The Voice, Survivor and more – will be on channel 13.
Come November 1, if you click to channel 22, where Channel 2 used to have its home, you will find no programming whatsoever. Same goes for the old channel 10. Yes and HOT, the two main TV providers, have also shifted around the stations that were found on channels 12, 13 and 14 to new homes.
And what of the nightly news program at 8 p.m.? That will be broadcast simultaneously on both channels 12 and 13, for now. As will the pre-news programs, including the 4:30 p.m. First Edition and the 6 p.m. news program with Oded Ben-Ami. Saturday’s Meet the Press will only be on Reshet 13.
And what of the long-running Savings Program that used to run at 7:30 p.m. and the Nightly News show at 11:15 p.m.? According to a report in Walla on Sunday, the two sides are still at war over who will be allowed to air those programs, since regulations ordered that they not be available to both providers. Keshet and Reshet reportedly struck a deal that would give the economic show to Keshet 12 and the late-night program to Reshet 13.
But according to Walla, that deal was called off at the last minute, and the future of those shows is unclear. The Marker reported on Sunday that the two sides are still working on a deal. If they can’t sign an agreement quickly, those shows may be off the air completely – a big blow to the Channel 2 News company, which is independent of Keshet and Reshet.