Why Netflix streaming is under the axe in South Africa
JOHANNESBURG — Netflix and other global streaming platforms could eventually face new South African regulatory obligations, including requirements around local content and potentially carrying SABC programming, after communications regulator ICASA formally opened an inquiry into the impact of online services on the country’s regulated broadcasters and telecommunications companies.
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa published its notice of intention to conduct the market inquiry on 4 September, bringing a long running debate over the different rules applying to traditional broadcasters and internet based platforms into a formal regulatory process.
The inquiry covers over the top services, a broad category that includes video streaming platforms such as Netflix as well as internet based communications services.
For South African broadcasters, the central issue is that licensed operators face regulatory requirements while international streaming companies can compete for audiences and revenue without necessarily carrying equivalent obligations.
Law firm Webber Wentzel has warned that the inquiry could ultimately consider bringing streaming services into South Africa’s communications licensing framework. Depending on ICASA’s eventual findings and subsequent regulatory processes, possibilities could include local content obligations, regulatory contributions and requirements similar to the must carry rules already applied in traditional broadcasting.
That could have significant implications for the SABC.
South Africa’s existing must carry framework requires subscription television broadcasters to carry specified SABC channels. Extending comparable obligations to streaming services could potentially result in platforms such as Netflix being required to make certain public broadcaster content available, although ICASA has not decided that this will happen.
The inquiry therefore does not mean Netflix will suddenly be forced to carry SABC programming. It begins a regulatory process that could determine whether the rules governing South Africa’s traditional broadcasting industry remain appropriate as audiences increasingly move online.
The debate extends beyond television. Telecommunications companies have also argued that global digital services generate substantial traffic over networks financed and maintained by local operators without carrying the same infrastructure costs or regulatory responsibilities.
ICASA’s process is expected to move through written submissions, a discussion document and public hearings before findings are published. The regulator has previously examined competition in subscription television, an inquiry dating back to 2016 and involving broadcasters, sporting bodies, content owners and streaming companies.
For viewers, the eventual consequences could extend well beyond whether SABC programmes appear on Netflix. The inquiry raises a much bigger question about whether South Africa should continue regulating television according to how content reaches the screen when traditional broadcasters and global streaming services increasingly compete for the same audiences.
Anyone with additional information can contact the press desk at press@townpress.co.za.