SA government turns attention to DStv premium content
The Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services in South Africa, Siyabonga Cwele, said in his budget speech on Wednesday (16 July), that he is going to push for the regulation of exclusive premium content in South Africa.
“We intend to direct the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) to develop regulations in respect of the premium content which aims to regulate how different broadcasters will access premium content for their services,” Cwele said.
He explained that the premium content he was referring to includes sports rights, films, and “other content previously accessed through exclusive terms.”
DStv’s exclusive rights to broadcast content such as certain sporting events, movies, and series has drawn sharp criticism in the past.
Cwele is not the first Minister to make noise about regulating premium content in South Africa.
Former Minister of Communications Dina Pule also promised that she was going to issue a policy directive to Icasa to look at wholesale regulations for premium content.
When Pule was replaced by former Minister of Communications Yunus Carrim, he, too, said that premium content — especially sports — should be available to ordinary South Africans on free-to-air platforms.
This article first appeared on MyBroadband
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