Google agreed to pay South African media houses R688 million.
The South African National Editors Forum (Sanef) says the findings and recommendations of the final report of the Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry released by the Competition Commission mark a landmark moment in South Africa’s attempt to address global digital market failures that have profoundly affected the sustainability of journalism.
Last week, Google agreed to pay South African media houses R688 million following the outcome of the report.
Inquiry
The Inquiry was conducted to establish whether there are any market features on digital platforms that distribute news media content, which impede, distort, or restrict competition, or undermine the purposes of the Competition Act, and which have material implications for the news media sector in South Africa.
The Inquiry found that major global platforms, including Google, Meta, Microsoft, TikTok, X, and AI companies, dominate key gateways that South Africans use to access news and information, which has had an adverse effect on local news media.
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Encouraged
Sanef said it is encouraged by the country’s attempt to address global digital market failures.
“The council welcome the Commission’s recognition that the challenge before it was not merely to compensate for harms already suffered, but to ‘fix the competition problem rather than simply compensate for the negative outcome.”
Gains
Sanef stated that the final report yields several significant benefits.
“These include a negotiated and enforceable funding package between the Commission and Google; binding commitments and remedies applicable to Meta, TikTok, Microsoft, X and OpenAI; newly established obligations on YouTube; and interventions that incorporate the SABC’s critical public mandate.
“Importantly, the report situates these remedies within an explicit democratic framing, recognising journalism as a public good essential to accountability, transparency, and the health of South Africa’s constitutional order,” Sanef said.
Digital media regulation
Sanef said it believes the Commission has produced a well-argued, well-researched report that significantly shifts the policy terrain, adding that while it does not resolve all structural issues, it establishes a solid foundation for the next phase of South Africa’s digital media regulation.
At the same time, Sanef added that it remains concerned that the Commission has not provided direct support to strengthen the Press Council and BCCSA.
It said these “self-regulatory bodies are foundational to the integrity of the remedies, yet their sustainability remains uncertain.”
“If these institutions weaken, the entire architecture of the Inquiry’s outcomes may come under strain,” Sanef said.
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