SA’s pushback against big tech: Lessons for Botswana media

Kabo Ramasia | Monday November 24, 2025 08:46

Mbuya noted that once the media finds itself in such a situation, the media will still pay, but the principal amount will remain the same..KENNEDY RAMOKONE

While these platforms have opened new avenues for communication, they have also eroded the financial foundations of traditional media, weakened local journalism, and introduced unprecedented challenges related to misinformation, data protection, and platform accountability. In this evolving digital landscape, South Africa has emerged as one of the few African nations willing to confront the unchecked power of global technology giants. It's growing pushback through regulatory challenges, competition reviews, and demands for fair compensation for local content offers important lessons for the rest of the continent, Botswana included. Recently, the South African National Editors Forum (SANEF) welcomed the findings and recommendations shared via the Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry report released by the Competition Commission.

The inquiry, which was formally started in October 2023, was done in line with section 43B (1) (a) of the Competition Act 89 of 1998 (as amended). The new report found that big tech companies have severely affected news media in that they are the gateways through which audiences consume and or access information. According to the report: “An inquiry was initiated because the Commission has reason to believe that there exist market features in digital platforms that distribute news media content, the AdTech markets that facilitate digital advertising and the AI services that use and display news media content, which impede, distort or restrict competition, or undermine the purposes of the Act, and which have material implications for the news media sector of South Africa. This includes features that adversely affect consumer choice, media diversity, and media organisations that are small and medium enterprises (“SMEs”) or owned by historically disadvantaged persons (“HDPs”).”

As per the report, the scope of the inquiry set out to investigate amongst others market features that may distort competition for advertising revenue between news media organisations and digital platforms, and whether these are affected by imbalances in bargaining power, market features of those digital platforms that may distort competition amongst news media organisations for online distribution and advertising revenue, the impact of generative AI tools of digital platforms on the above, market features of ad tech that may distort competition, affecting the level, price and share of advertising revenue to news media organisations, and the impact of the above on the quality and choice of news content to consumers, and on SME and HDP owned news organisations According to the report, the decline in media revenue has shrunk newsrooms, led to the closure of bureaus and print media houses, and negatively affected journalism in fulfilling its societal role. “Even the public broadcaster, tasked with public interest journalism and ensuring citizens get news in their own language, faces a funding crisis. It is also a common cause that neither search nor social media platforms themselves generate news content and thus are not in a position to replace the loss of news media journalism in SA,” stated the report.

Denoting a light at the end of the tunnel for SA journalism, the final report, as validated by stakeholders, reveals that remedial actions entail that Google will pay R688 million into a Journalism Sustainability Fund, YouTube to offer automatic access to South African media as well as the support of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) with ad sales. Similarly, Botswana media faces severe financial constraints owing to big tech competition and shifts in consumer consumption of news media.

Delivering a presentation on media sustainability earlier this year at a media sustainability summit jointly hosted by MISA Botswana and WAN-INFRA Women in News(WIN), Mmegi managing director Titus Mbuya argued that news printing is very expensive, but media houses still had to pay VAT. To this end, he proposed that “government should consider zero-rating such raw materials for the media.” Mbuya stated that as of now, media houses are in debt/ tax arrears, which run into millions. The veteran journalist shared that all media houses without exception owed VAT to the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS) and urged that the arrears be waived. Mbuya noted that once the media finds itself in such a situation, the media will still pay, but the principal amount will remain the same. Further, he indicated that there should be tax rebates and a reduction in corporate tax. Furthermore, Mbuya highlighted that given the dire media situation, the government should forfeit printing services to the private sector. He underscored the need for the government to empower private businesses that had the capacity to print newspapers instead of competing with them amidst the collapsing media business. “They should give the Daily News to the private sector to print,” he said. In addition, he advocated for the establishment of a Media Development Fund.

He stressed that this MDF should encompass government funding of media houses directly, as it was dangerous. Consequently, he said direct funding would compromise editorial independence. However, he said the MDF would fund organisations such as MISA, the Botswana Editors Forum, for the training of journalists (capacity building). He said, “It can even be extended to giving out loans to media houses on reasonable terms, just like other financial institutions like CEDA does in Agriculture.”

Meanwhile, in Botswana, Parliament recently passed the VAT (Amendment) Bill of 2025, which introduces a digital tax on remote services. The Bill seeks to collect VAT targeting services like Netflix. More to this, the government has hinted at the possibility of introducing income tax for big tech companies that generate revenue in Botswana. As with South Africa and the rest of the world, platforms like Google, META, X, and many more continue to disrupt traditional media, leading to job losses, the collapse of newspapers, and the shifting of advertising to online platforms.