ZBC to charge between $3 - $5 'access fee' per TV set

The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) plans to introduce six new channels following the switch from analogue to digital with encrypted content which can only be viewed after paying a monthly 'Access Fee' of US$3-5 per TV set.

The access fee will replace the old TV licence fee of $30 per annum and must be paid by everyone with a TV set – even users who only subscribe to DStv.

ZBC has also struggled to collect enough licence fees to cater for its financial needs.

A new report from Dataxis - Pay-TV/ FTA Broadcasting in Zimbabwe - shows the country had 3.43 million households end-2014 with a TV household penetration rate of 53%.