South Africa’s Competition Commission Pushes for Social Media Ombudsman to Curb Tech Giants’ Dominance
In a bold move to protect local news creators and consumers, South Africa’s Competition Commission has called for a powerful social media watchdog to challenge the hold of global platforms like Meta, YouTube, and TikTok. After a two-year investigation, the report shows these tech firms rake in over R10 billion in yearly ad revenue from South African content, yet they fail to share fairly with publishers. Opaque algorithms push down independent media, while seven out of ten adults rely on social feeds full of fake news. The suggested ombudsman would handle complaints, demand openness, and help media strike better deals as a group. If put in place, this could breathe new life into the R50 billion media sector by spreading digital profits more evenly.
The push comes as South Africa grapples with a shifting media landscape, where digital giants dominate ad markets and squeeze traditional outlets. This report marks a key step in addressing these imbalances, aiming to foster a fairer environment for local journalism and informed citizens.
The Inquiry’s Deep Dive: Uncovering Power Imbalances in Digital Media
The Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry kicked off on 17 October 2023 under the Competition Act. It looked into how digital platforms for news, ad tech, and AI might harm competition, consumer choice, media diversity, and the involvement of small businesses and historically disadvantaged people. After 24 months of gathering evidence, public hearings, expert inputs, and consumer surveys, the final report came out on 13 November 2025.
Key discoveries show a sharp drop in traditional media revenue. Print circulation fell 66% from 2018 to 2023, TV viewership dipped 20-40%, and ad income for public broadcasters like the SABC dropped 47% since 2016. While digital gains exist, they are four to five times smaller than the losses. Social media referrals to news sites have declined by a third from 2022 to 2024, and organic search traffic halved from 2016 to 2024.
Platforms like Google hold 95% of the search market, while social media is the main news source for 77% of South Africans. Yet, these giants capture most of the value. For example, Google earns less than R35 million from news-related ads but provides R370 million in referral value through 600 million clicks. The overall imbalance favours platforms by R200-300 million yearly. In ad tech, Google controls over 90% of ad servers and 50-60% of supply-side platforms, leading to higher fees and less revenue for publishers.
The report also flags how algorithms favour sensational content, creating echo chambers and spreading misinformation. Foreign media gets 70-80% of impressions in top stories, while local content struggles. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini use news data for training without payment, further cutting traffic with zero-click summaries.
These shifts have hit the R50 billion industry hard, causing job losses, newsroom closures, and a net loss to public good. Staff numbers have halved in some outlets, with more casual and junior roles. This erodes quality journalism, widens inequality, and undermines constitutional rights to information in home languages.
Algorithm Opacity and Misinformation: A Growing Threat to Consumers
A major concern is how hidden algorithms bury quality news. Platforms prioritise content that boosts engagement, often sensational or divisive, over accurate reporting. This leads to misinformation spreading faster—falsehoods reach farther and quicker than truth, per studies. In South Africa, 81% of people worry about fake news, with only 7% trusting social media sources compared to 24% for search.
Seventy percent of adults get news from social feeds, making them vulnerable to harm. The report notes 40% feel overwhelmed by news volume, up from 28%. Children face risks due to low digital literacy. AI summaries may worsen this by substituting direct access to sources, and platforms’ moderation often falls short, tolerating harmful content unless it poses imminent danger.
Consumers benefit from convenient access—87% get news online—but lose out on diversity. Vernacular and community media, vital for local stories in 11 languages, get shortchanged in visibility and ads. Public broadcasters, mandated for universal access, rely on declining funds, limiting their reach.
The Proposed Ombudsman: A Watchdog with Real Teeth
To fix these issues, the Commission suggests a Social Media Ombudsman as an independent body under the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies. This watchdog would oversee platforms’ compliance with transparency, fairness, and consumer protection rules. Its role includes monitoring algorithm effects on misinformation and sensationalism, promoting diverse content like local and vernacular news, and enforcing a code of conduct.
Powers would include investigating complaints, requiring data disclosure, imposing fines, arbitrating disputes, and recommending policies. It could issue take-downs for harmful content under the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, granting platforms limited liability if they join an industry body and follow guidelines. The ombudsman would represent consumers in disputes and refer cases for prosecution, complementing bodies like the South African Human Rights Commission and Film and Publication Board.
This DSA-like framework aims to mitigate echo chambers and ensure fair bargaining. Long-term, it would need legislation to solidify its authority, addressing biases and digital repression like shadow banning of South African content.
Tailored Remedies: Targeting Tech Giants for Fairer Deals
The report outlines platform-specific fixes. For Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), YouTube, TikTok, and X, it calls for negotiations with news collectives on revenue sharing for snippets, feeds, and AI training. If talks fail, arbitration steps in. A block exemption from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition would allow collective bargaining on monetisation terms, AI licensing, ad tech pricing, and joint ad sales for community media.
Transparency demands include disclosing ranking algorithms, data usage, and ad metrics. Google must provide clearer details on core updates and expand data sharing via Search Console. Ad tech requires pricing and deductions reporting, per EU Digital Markets Act standards.
For AI, platforms must share click-through rate data from chatbots and respect opt-outs for summaries. Community media gets a boost through collective ad sales and certification for audience measurement.
These actions aim to restore balance, with platforms earning over R10 billion in South African ad revenue without fair pay to creators. By enforcing sharing, the report seeks to revive the industry, supporting the public good of journalism.
Economic and Social Stakes: Reviving a R50 Billion Industry
The media sector, worth R50 billion, faces existential threats from these imbalances. Closures create news deserts, reducing accountability and civic engagement. The shift erodes trust—only 57% trust news overall—and widens gaps, with wealthier accessing paywalled content while poorer rely on misinformation-prone feeds.
If adopted, the remedies could inject funds back into local media, sustaining jobs and quality reporting. Collective deals might mirror Australia’s News Media Bargaining Code, which has generated over AUD$200 million for publishers since 2021. In South Africa, this could help the 380 print outlets, 207 community radio stations, and public broadcasters like SABC, ensuring diverse voices in a multilingual society.
The Commission encourages self-regulation first, with monitoring to assess effectiveness. If needed, further probes or enforcement could follow.
Next Steps: From Report to Reality
The report urges the government to act on recommendations, starting with the ombudsman framework and block exemption. Stakeholders have called for swift implementation, noting the limits of national rules against global tech but praising the focus on transparency and fairness.
As digital platforms evolve, this inquiry sets a precedent for protecting local industries. For South Africans, it means better access to reliable news and a fairer share of digital wealth, strengthening democracy in the process.
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