SABC proposes public media levy replace TV licence as revenue option

The SABC said that a public media levy to replace TV licences was one of the options to help return the public broadcaster to profitability.

The new proposed levy would apply to all households and businesses.

The SABC on Wednesday appeared before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) to brief it on irregular expenditure and finances.

The SABC told Scopa that it hoped to make a profit in about two years.

But the broadcaster and its sole shareholder said that it was concerned about declining advertising revenues which posed a threat to the company’s future financial position.

Chairperson Bongumusa Makhathini told MPs that a public media levy to replace TV licences was another revenue option.

“In the main, the first one talks to the replacement of the current TV licence regime with what we call a public media levy which also has a component where the subscription major players can also assist with the collection of the public media levy. That’s very important because it is still one of our major streams of revenue at the SABC,” Makhathini said.

The SABC said that it was doing well in terms of meeting targets in its turnaround strategy and did not need a government bailout, at least for now.

The SABC also managed to post a profit for two quarters in the current financial year.

-EWN

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