South Africa: Released MDPMI consumer survey results including information regarding the influence of online platforms on news consumption

On 23 October 2024, the Competition Commission of South Africa released the results of a nationally representative consumer survey conducted as part of the Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry (MDPMI), examining how South Africans engage with news across digital platforms such as social media, search engines, and personalised news feeds. The survey highlighted that 77% of respondents rely on social media platforms as their main source of news, with Facebook being the most popular, followed by TikTok, WhatsApp, and YouTube. Search engines such as Google were the second most commonly used platform, and the survey also determined that consumers more frequently only read headlines and snippets, often finding these sufficient for their needs. The survey also explored how consumers’ behaviours are influenced by breaking news, local community news, and AI chatbots.