Business Day reports that Tavern TV, aimed at South African shebeens, will be launched in August by the Provantage Group.

The Group predicts that Tavern TV will reach four million patrons a month at more than 1,000 outlets by the end of 2009.

The TV station is a subsidiary of Provantage Tavern Media and plans to offer aspirational programming, such as celebrity news and gossip, as well as user-generated content. Programmes will be in two-hour loops, with 40% of the air time devoted to ads.