Discovery to Ramp Up New Zealand Business

Discovery, Inc. has unveiled its 2022 plans for New Zealand, with a 70 percent increase in local production, the launch of two new channels and the expansion of its news offering and ThreeNow.

Among the new local series set for debut next year is Nadia’s Farm, with foodie Nadia Lim giving everyone an inside look at her rural life. The series will be available on the flagship channel Three.

Also coming to Three will be My Town Makeover, Sort Your Life Out and the new New Zealand original format Tracked. Returning series include MasterChef NZ, The Masked Singer NZ, Dancing with the Stars NZ, Match Fit, Patrick Gower: On, David Lomas Investigates, 7 Days and more.

New Zealanders will gain access to two new free-to-air channels in March: Gusto and Rush. Gusto will feature titles such as Changing Rooms UK, Big Family Farm, Finding Alice and Great Southern Truckers. Rush will offer titles including Wheeler Dealers, Man vs. Wild, Street Outlaws and Treehouse Masters.

In an effort to expand its news offering, Discovery will introduce Newshub Live at 8pm, a tightly curated 30-minute show with all the big stories of each day. It will air on Gusto.

Discovery also plans to expand ThreeNow into a standalone destination that will be the on-demand home for shows from Three, Gusto, Rush, Bravo and HGTV.

“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,” said Glen Kyne, senior VP and general manager of Discovery ANZ. “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.”

Kyne continued, “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.”