The SABC promised parliament that the South African public broadcaster will spend R1 billion in 2013 on buying and commissioning international and local content of which R800 million will be spent on local content commissioning.
The SABC which presented its 3 year Corporate Plan to parliament, said the public broadcaster which faced near collapse in 2009 during an executive, management and financial meltdown, is committed to spend R800 million in the 2013 fiscal on local content "as part of our key role in reviving and further developing our local production industry''.
The SABC plans to increase its current 3 TV channels, SABC1, SABC2 and SABC3 to a total of 18 TV channels when digital terrestrial television (DTT) finally launches commercially in South Africa. The department of communications which keeps moving the DTT date, again moved it at the beginning of the year and this time to September this year.
In the SABC's 18 TV channels is included a 24 hour news channel, as well as a sport channel, SABC Sport, which the SABC wants to start on 1 October this year.
The SABC told parliament that it plans to invest R1,7 billion in the first 3 years of launch of digital terrestrial television. The SABC needs to produce and acquire content for all the TV channels, and is also upgrading its play-out systems and master control rooms to a digital environment.
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