Indian Music Station Loses Advertisers, Listeners Following South African Local Music Directive

The state media of South Africa has ordered all stations to play 90 percent local music and 10 percent foreign.

Lotus FM, an Indian music station station in Durban, South Africa, cries fowl since it is now losing money and its market.

Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s declaration that all SABC radio stations ought to play 90% home grown music and 10% international has had an overwhelming effect for the customary Indian radio station Lotus FM.

In the four months since the pronouncement produced results, the Durban originating radio station has lost around 33% of its audience members, with its normal audience numbers falling by around 130,000, from 390,000 to 260,000.

The advertising community have taken after the audience members, saying their exploration demonstrates that their objective market no more listens to Lotus FM.

An inside source — who talked on state of obscurity because of a paranoid fear of backlashes — says the 33-year-old Lotus FM has been unfavorably influenced by the announcement. They now need to play kwaito, Afrikaans and other neighborhood music.

After the pronouncement became effective, audience members called Lotus FM shows to express their disappointment at the sudden change, however the source says SABC administration told the station it refrain from engaging with “grumblers and whingers”, and ought to switch them off.

The SABC and its representative, Kaizer Kganyago, did not react to rehashed demands for input.