Broadcasters, the Television Industry and Civil Society Unite Behind a Shared Vision for The Future of Public Interest Television

On 08 July 2026, the SOS Support Public Broadcasting Coalition (SOS) successfully convened a Summit titled, “The Future of Public Interest Television Broadcasting” in Sandton, Johannesburg, under the theme “Reimagining Universal Access to Public Interest Content in the Digital Age”. 

The Summit brought together representatives from government, Parliament, ICASA, broadcasters, civil society organisations, academia, and industry experts in what participants described as a timely and urgently needed multi-stakeholder engagement. Participants agreed that the magnitude of challenges facing the sector called for sustained collaboration to chart a shared way forward.

A significant moment at the Summit was the presentation of the draft ‘Summit Declaration on the Future of Public Interest Television Broadcasting’ with practical commitments on how the sector should move forward to resolve long-standing challenges facing the broadcast television sector.

Strong consensus emerged from the discussions, and among the important proposals advanced during the Summit, participants called for an official moratorium on any further Analogue Switch-Off (ASO) of television transmission until key readiness conditions have been met. These include that at least 90% of analogue-dependent households (inclusive of those classified as indigent and the so-called ‘missing middle’ of poor households above the indigent threshold) should be successfully migrated to digital television platforms before ASO can happen. 

Participants further emphasised the need for a rights-based and inclusive approach to the Broadcasting Digital Migration (BDM) that leaves no-one behind and protects universal access to free-to-air television and public interest television content throughout the transition. Furthermore, there was call for a BDM policy review along with an increase of the R3,500 indigent household threshold for subsidised Set-Top Boxes (STBs) to reflect South Africa’s current socio-economic realities.

Participants highlighted the need for a sustainable funding framework for public interest broadcasting, a comprehensive review of South Africa’s broadcasting policy and regulatory framework to respond to technological convergence and changing audience behaviour. Other factors include stronger multi-stakeholder collaboration among relevant parties and measures to ensure that public interest content remains accessible, discoverable and affordable across both traditional broadcasting and online platforms.

A key outcome of the Summit is the proposed establishment of the Crisis Action Committee (CAC), a multi-stakeholder group led by broadcasters which will spearhead transparent coordination to guide the implementation of the BDM. This body should facilitate collaboration among stakeholders, oversee evidence-based planning and monitoring, identify immediate priorities, drive public awareness, and advise on the direction South Africa should take regarding future digital broadcasting technologies. It will provide regular progress reports to the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) and the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies (PPCCDT). 

The participation of the PPCCDT underscored the importance of continued parliamentary oversight and engagement on the future of broadcasting in South Africa. Members of the Committee welcomed the multi-stakeholder dialogue and emphasised the value of ongoing collaboration to inform policy development and oversight of South Africa’s digital migration process. Read the PPCCDT delegation’s closing remarks and response to issues raised during the summit here.

The Committee members further indicated that they would recommend the full Committee consider convening an urgent parliamentary colloquium involving government, regulators, broadcasters, civil society and digital platform stakeholders to consider the future of broadcasting policy and South Africa’s digital transition. They said that the outcomes of the Summit, including the Summit Declaration, would inform their ongoing oversight programme.

When the Summit concluded, participants were united under one message: the work has only just begun. The conversations at the event should translate into coordinated action, evidence-based policy reform and sustained multi-stakeholder engagement to ensure that no one is left behind in South Africa’s digital transition and that universal access to public interest content remains protected.

The consolidated Summit Declaration will be published in due course, and the recording of the Summit is available on the SOS Coalition’s YouTube channel, find here: part 1 & part 2.  

For more information, 

For more information, please contact:

1. Uyanda Siyotula

National Coordinator

060 691 2462

2. Carol Seatlanyane

Communications officer

064 011 5648