The SRG halving initiative «200 francs is enough!» is a threat to Swiss culture

The popular initiative initiated by SVP circles «200 francs is enough! (SRG initiative)» initiated by SVP circles aims to reduce the fees for radio and television from CHF 335 to CHF 200 per year. The corporate fee would be completely abolished if the referendum is accepted. According to the opponents, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG) would lose around half of its fee income. This is why the SRG initiative is also known as the halving initiative. The Federal Council already accommodated the initiators in 2024. It decided to reduce the household fee to CHF 300 per year by ordinance. This is problematic because the Federal Councillor responsible for the media, Albert Rösti, was a member of the initiative committee for the halving initiative as a member of the National Council. In addition, numerous companies will no longer have to pay a fee in future. As a result, SRG expects to save around CHF 270 million by 2029. This corresponds to around 17 percent of the current financial framework. The halving initiative would not only lead to an estimated reduction of almost 2,500 full-time positions at SRG itself, but also to the loss of 6,300 jobs in total, particularly at supplier companies throughout Switzerland.

Ideological reasons for halving fees

«The SRG's market power must be broken so that it has fewer resources to spread ideologies,» Thomas Matter, SVP National Councillor from the canton of Zurich and one of the co-initiators, told Blick. He said that there was a «strong left-wing bias» at SRF.

A more neutral view of SRG comes to a different conclusion: The initiative would have far-reaching effects on SRG's journalistic offering and regional roots. SRG invests heavily in the Swiss cultural sector and broadcasts educational and background formats as well as sporting events. Zurich SP National Councillor Jacqueline Badran states: “In accordance with its mandate, SRG must also offer entertainment, as stated in the constitution and the Media Act. The “Landfrauenküche” or “Auf und davon” have gigantic viewing figures. Commercial providers would not be able to cope with this, or only marginally. That's why the SRG is not a competitor to private providers.” Many popular programs such as the series «Tschugger», background programs such as «DOK» or popular live sports programs could then no longer be produced. Thanks to the SRG, all parts of the country have their own fully-fledged television and radio. Swiss Radio and Television (SRF), Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS), Radiotelevisione Svizzera (RSI), Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR) and Swissinfo also report in areas where there are hardly any media. SRG thus ensures that all language and peripheral regions as well as all population groups have access to high-quality content that is independent of financial and political interests in small-scale, quadrilingual Switzerland. With half as many resources, this access would simply be lost and a full program in four languages would no longer be possible. In view of the major difficulties and downsizing of private media companies, it would be all the more reckless to massively weaken the public media service. This would not stop the downward spiral of the media industry, but on the contrary would intensify it. After all, the SRG is involved in numerous collaborations to strengthen Switzerland as a media center and works closely with private media companies.

SRG is also our spearhead in the fight against misleading information. It stands for verified facts and a network of correspondents who check information on the spot. As a democracy, we will continue to need strong, credible reporting in the future. Fees are important: thanks to them, SRG can report freely. It does not have to take into account the interests of a private owner or be guided by click figures. This enables journalism that informs rather than sells - independently and in the service of the public. The cuts we know about today are already drastic and problematic. It is therefore hard to imagine what we will face if there is an additional massive cut to a minimum of CHF 200 per year. Then we would no longer be talking about «optimizations», but about massive cuts that would fundamentally change the range, quality and regional presence.

Culture particularly affected

As Suisseculture, the umbrella organization of professional cultural organizations in Switzerland and Swiss copyright societies, to which the SMV also belongs, emphasizes, culture would be particularly hard hit by further cuts. For Swiss culture, the SRG is not just one media provider among many. SRG is a mainstay of culture and cultural production in Switzerland. It is the largest cultural producer in the country. It is important for creative artists in the fields of film, music, literature and beyond, and is an important cultural mediator. Through its foreign mandates - 3Sat, TV5 Monde, tvsvizzera.it and swissinfo.com - these cultural events are also visible on a larger scale far beyond Switzerland.

As far as the music sector is concerned, the Swiss Music Council (SMR) has a clear idea of the importance of SRG for our country and the dangers our country faces if the initiative is accepted:

The SMR states that 80.5% of the population listen to music via radio and television. Today, SRG is the largest platform for Swiss music - on the radio, on television and online. Every year, it broadcasts over 42,000 hours of Swiss music and produces almost 1,000 hours of live music. This creates a reach that no private broadcaster or streaming platform can replace. If SRG is halved, the visibility of our music will also be halved - and many voices will fall silent in the national space. From SRF 3 to Couleur 3, from Rete Due to Radio RTR: on average, SRG stations play 38% of Swiss music, with individual radio stations even playing over 50 percent. This is not a matter of course, but a cultural policy decision. Private stations primarily play international hits - Swiss productions would disappear from people's everyday lives. Halving this would be a withdrawal of Swiss music from its own public sphere. Every year, tens of millions of francs flow into the Swiss music industry via Suisa, Swissperform and direct productions. This money makes compositions, recordings, studios, tours and collaborations possible. Halving it would be an economic slash of historic proportions - especially for freelancers, small labels, producers and ensembles. SRG broadcasts concerts by symphony orchestras, chamber ensembles, jazz festivals, folk music associations and regional ensembles. It documents our musical cultural heritage. Private broadcasters do not produce such content - because it is costly and does not generate maximum ratings. The halving initiative would bring this area to a standstill. Commercial broadcasters play what is profitable. SRG plays what makes Switzerland what it is.

Music, film and cultural journalism exist in Switzerland almost exclusively thanks to the SRG. Reviews, portraits, background information, debates, concert reports - none of this has a commercial market. Without SRG, Switzerland's cultural public sphere is shrinking. And without publicity, there is no relevance. Culture that is not talked about does not take place.

Important vote for musicians

SRG has always made radio and television for the whole of Switzerland - in four languages and for all sections of the population. It thus holds the country together and is socially indispensable for public information, democratic opinion-forming, but also for culture, entertainment and sport. And the economic importance of SRG for the media sector goes far beyond its own size. For all these reasons, if SRG is broken up, the damage will be immense. And this is precisely what the halving initiative threatens to do. We therefore need a resounding "no" to this initiative. According to the polls, the outcome of the vote will be close. In their own interest, musicians should take part in the vote and reject the initiative.