South Africa: Closed consultation on White Paper on Audio and Audiovisual Media Services and Online Content Safety including foreign ownership limitations

On 8 September 2023, the South African Government closed its consultation on the draft White Paper on Audio and Audiovisual Media Services and Online Content Safety. The White Paper includes high-level policy proposals on regulations and principles to modernise the current legal framework on Audio and Audio-visual Content Services (AAVCS). In particular, a proposal is included to modify the current limitation on foreign direct investment ownership in linear individual audiovisual content services from 20% to 49%. Foreign persons from the African Union may own more than 49% of a service based on reciprocity.