South African owners and senior leadership of print and digital media companies have met with Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele to discuss a variety of issues impacting the sector

South African owners and senior leadership of print and digital media companies have met with Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele to discuss a variety of issues impacting the sector.

The meeting’s goal was to examine important issues impacting the media industry, such as the function of print media and its dedication to transformation across the board, the effects of over-the-top services (OTTs) on the industry, and suggestions for media sustainability in the nation.

The Presidency issued a statement stating that “the meeting also discussed further challenges affecting the sector, such as the drop in circulation figures and advertising, which led to job losses.”

The Presidency said that a second meeting has been planned to look further into the idea of media transformation.

The meeting today decided to schedule a follow-up meeting with all affected role-players to examine the media transformation and revitalisation process, in light of convergence in South Africa and globally.

“On the issue of transformation, there was an in-principle agreement on what needs to be done.

The meeting also decided that Minister Gungubele would engage more with the “Big Five” [of the industry] as well as the larger print and digital media sector to get their thoughts on the sector’s market definition, linguistic diversity concerns, and proposals to ensure the sector’s long-term sustainability, according to the statement.