Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – SSR, the Swiss Broadcasting Company, is freezing salaries effective the end of 2009, as well as new hires, part of a series of measures to economize in the face of a growing deficit. The company announced Tuesday 23 June that the state-supported system will see its deficit grow from CHF200-790 million by 2014 without larger subsidies or revenues.
The salary freeze will allow the company to save CHF30 million a year, but it still needs to find another CHF40m a year to remain financially healthy.
Other cost-cutting moves that are planned are to reduce the company’s involvement in major sports events, drop a planned subsidization of the license fees for people on federal disability insurance and scrap plans for an RSR radio continuous news programme. SSR will also reduce its investments and sell some of the real estate it owns.
For now, no programmes will be cut but the possibility that 140 jobs will go later has been raised.
RSR reports that the deficit is largely structural and even once the economy revives it will likely remain. Alternatives mentioned by SSR are increasing the TV/radio license fees and relaxing the strict rules about advertising: public broadcasting units can accept sponsors but not advertisers.
SSR’s units that operate in the Lake Geneva region are TSR television, RSR radio, swissinfo online for overseas Swiss and World Radio Switzerland (WRS) for English-speaking listeners.
Details, SSR
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News story, GenevaLunch, 23 June 2009.
Filed under: Business
Tags: cost cutting, deficit, hiring freeze, license fees, Media, RSR, salary freeze, SSR, TSR, WRS