South Africa’s competition regulator announced on Thursday that several global tech companies have offered concessions after an inquiry into the digital media sector.
One key outcome was a media-support package of 688 million rand (about US $40 million) agreed with Google and YouTube, aimed at supporting national, community and non-English-language media through a combination of content licensing, innovation grants and capacity-building initiatives, the regulator said.
Google stated that its investment “is consistent with its support for news partners around the world” and added: “Helping the news industry adapt to the digital age is a shared responsibility. It requires innovation from publishers, a broad-based approach from the wider industry and government, and contributions from multiple platforms, not just Google.”
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According to Reuters, the final report of the Competition Commission of South Africa’s Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry highlighted how global digital platforms such as Google and YouTube, Meta (owner of Facebook), Microsoft, TikTok, X Corp (formerly Twitter) and AI companies have significantly disrupted traditional media’s access to audiences and revenue streams.
The commission said YouTube has agreed to provide access and support to South African media outlets to monetise their content on the platform.
Meta will provide ad credits to local media, along with resources and training.
TikTok has pledged to introduce new publisher-support programmes in South Africa.
The commission said that “most major companies have agreed to the remedies and will implement them immediately,” but added that it has imposed a requirement on X Corp to offer all its monetisation programmes in South Africa.
The final report was handed to Parks Tau, South Africa’s minister of trade, industry and competition, who said he would present it to Parliament.
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Image Credit: Market Screener
