Hiking TV licence fees won’t solve the SABC’s funding crisis

The SABC has said it may seek an increase in television licence fees. But experts warn this is a “Band-Aid solution” to the deeper problems with its finances.

The public broadcaster raised the possibility of higher TV licence fees – which haven’t been hiked in many years – during a presentation to parliament’s standing committee on public accounts (Scopa).

Meanwhile, the real solution to the SABC’s financial woes, namely a revised SABC Bill with a new funding model for the public broadcaster, remains stuck in limbo due to an political fight between the ANC and the Democratic Alliance in the government of national unity (GNU).

Communications minister, the DA’s Solly Malatsi, pulled the controversial SABC Bill from parliament in November 2024 – a move that was met with fierce opposition from his ANC counterparts in the GNU. Deputy President Paul Mashatile was even roped in by the ANC to fight Malatsi’s decision. The minister cited the bill’s inadequacy at addressing the public broadcaster’s funding model for his decision, which – other than the backlash from the ANC – was widely welcomed by broadcasting industry stakeholders.

Six months later and there has been no movement. According to communications portfolio chair Khusela Diko, the bill “remains in parliament as the executive is still to communicate its withdrawal to the speaker” – all while the SABC bleeds.

“The issues around the [delays of the] funding bill are making it difficult for our advertisers to commit to long-term contracts,” SABC chief financial officer Tendai Matore told Scopa this week. “That has put us in a position where we are perpetually funding long-term capital expenditure out of operational expenditure, and therefore our financial position is constantly under strain.”

Misguided

Advertising accounted for 80% of the SABC’s R5.1-billion in revenue in the 2024 financial year. Since advertisers are not committing to long-term contracts until there is certainty over the SABC’s future, the public broadcaster is desperate to shore up its financial position using income from other sources.

However, a focus on TV licence revenue is likely misguided. TV licensing fees accounted for just 13% (R686-million) of the SABC’s revenues in 2024. The fees were collected from 2.1 million accounts, representing an estimated compliance rate of only 19%. It reported an 8% decline in TV licence fee revenues from the R741-million collected in the 2023 financial year, it said. The R265 licence fee, which is payable annually by all owners of screens capable of receiving the SABC’s broadcasts, was last hiked in 2013, partly to stem the tide of falling compliance rates even then.

Read: SABC Plus tops a million registered users

By the SABC’s own admission, a TV licence fee increase is unlikely to make a meaningful impact to its finances, as consumers are under severe financial strain thanks to an economy that is barely expanding. South Africa is not alone, either: in other markets where TV licence fees are collected, there has also been a marked decline in compliance as consumers increasingly turn away from traditional broadcasters and to streaming platforms and social media apps like TikTok.

“During the year under review (2024), the TV licence fee collection remained well under budget and reflects a trend being experienced globally by all public broadcasters who rely on revenue from this source. It is clear that many households already under significant financial pressure do not view the TV licence fee as an equitable burden to bear,” SABC CEO Nomsa Chabeli said in the company’s annual report.

The compliance rate among government departments, although higher than the average, is still below 50%. Some R22.3-million was collected from just over a thousand government accounts in 2024. However, 2 490 overdue government accounts valued at R35-million were outstanding at the end of the reporting period.

Malatsi last October wrote to Mashatile to urge the deputy president to take action over this non-compliance, but just like the outstanding SABC Bill, there has been no update since.

Read: South Africa mulling streaming levy to fund SABC

Responding to a query by TechCentral on Thursday, Malati’s spokesman, Kwena Moloto, confirmed the SABC Bill “is still on cabinet’s agenda”, while the communications department is in the process of “procuring a service provider to develop a funding model for the SABC”.  – © 2025 NewsCentral Media

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