SABC Funding Talks Heat Up As Parliament Urges Deal With Netflix

• Parliament's communications committee is pushing for a formal partnership between the SABC and Netflix after an oversight visit to Cape Town
• The SABC's TV licence model has been crippled by an evasion rate exceeding 85%, with millions of households refusing or unable to pay
• Government is drafting a new funding bill to replace the TV licence system entirely by 2028, including talks of a new streaming levy

South Africa's Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies is pushing for the SABC and Netflix to work more closely together, following an official visit to the set of *One Piece* at Cape Town Film Studios.

The visit brought renewed attention to the strained relationship between the public broadcaster and the streaming platform. Previous attempts at collaboration have been derailed by disagreements over intellectual property ownership and incompatible business models. Despite this, government officials are now urging both sides to find common ground.

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Streaming levy enters the conversation

The push for alignment comes as parliament weighs introducing a dedicated streaming levy designed to channel funds directly into the SABC. According to BusinessTech, the proposal would require platforms operating in South Africa, including Netflix, to contribute to public broadcasting in a structured way. No final decision has been made, but the discussions signal a shift in how government views the relationship between global streaming services and local public media.

TV Licence model on its last legs

The SABC's long-running financial troubles sit at the heart of these conversations. The broadcaster is contending with a TV licence evasion rate of more than 85%, as households either turn to online streaming, outright refuse to pay, or cannot afford to. Pursuing millions of defaulting accounts through legal channels has proved far too expensive to be practical, leaving the SABC with a deepening revenue shortfall.

In response, government has begun drafting legislation to scrap the TV licence system entirely by 2028, replacing it with a more sustainable funding model suited to the realities of how South Africans consume media today.

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5 Briefly News articles about the SABC

• The South African Broadcasting Corporation is moving closer to scrapping its traditional TV licence system due to an 85% non-payment rate, prompting the government to draft a new bill for an alternative funding model by 2028.
• South African citizens seeking to cancel their SABC TV licence must settle all outstanding account balances and submit a certified affidavit confirming they no longer own or use a television set.
• The MK Party demanded full transparency from the SABC following the suspension of content head Lala Tuku amid a probe into R19 million linked to the troubled telenovela Pimville.
• The South African Broadcasting Corporation warned defaulting households that failing to pay TV licence fees could result in fines, legal action, or potential imprisonment.
• A new phishing scheme targeting TV licence holders with fake refund offers prompted public warnings from state broadcast officials urging citizens not to click suspicious links or disclose banking details.

Source: Briefly News