DSTV NetFlix

Netflix And DSTV Subscribers To Pay TV Licence

The SABC has said that regulation is needed which would make pay-tv service providers like MultiChoice (DStv) and video on demand providers like Netflix to collect TV licences on its behalf, Deputy Communications Minister Pinky Kekana has said.

In a presentation to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Communications presented by Kekana, the public broadcaster has said that the expanded definition of a TV licence is outdated and needs to be adjusted to current realities adding that this would be similar to municipalities collecting traffic fines and motor vehicle licence discs.

Kekana also said that the government’s proposal will help the SABC improve its financial position.  Kekana further stated:

“But we are not only limiting it to TV. We also have other platforms where people consume content and in all of those areas, that is where we should look at how we are able to get SABC licence fees from those gadgets.”

This suggests that the SABC wants users who watch content on devices such as laptops and smartphones to also pay licence fees. This also suggests that it (SABC) may want to negotiate with pay-tv providers to pay for these channels as it noted that the current regulations meant the deal only favoured Multichoice.

Netflix And DSTV Subscribers in South Africans took to social media to express the audacity of the SABC to force them to pay for TV licence for which majority of them have never paid for and don’t even know what a TV licence looks like.

South Africans who watch video streaming services like Netflix or pay-TV services like DStv could be forced to pay a SABC TV licence fee like a compulsory “traffic fine”,  even if they don’t use a TV.

The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has proposed that regulation be implemented to expand the definition of a TV licence to include services such as Netflix.

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