e.tv is the fifth terrestrial television channel in South Africa, following three channels operated by the state-owned South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC 1, SABC 2 and SABC 3) and the privately owned subscription-funded M-Net, operated by Multichoice. It is the first privately owned but free-to-air television station in the country. Because of its liberal policies regarding adult content and continual reinforcement of being free-to-air while broadcasting blockbuster movies, e.tv has seemingly won the ratings war against the SABC stations, especially over the weekends.