Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 23, 2026
3 min readLast updated: March 23, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleThe Czech ruling coalition—comprising ANO, SPD, and the Motorists—plans to introduce a bill to partially abolish licence fees for public television and radio, beginning with exemptions for seniors, youth, and businesses, aiming ultimately to shift funding entirely to the state budget; critics warn t
By Jan Lopatka
PRAGUE, March 23 (Reuters) - The Czech ruling coalition will introduce a legal change on Tuesday that would lower funding for public television and radio later this year, coalition politicians said on Monday, in a step critics see as an attempt to weaken independent media.
The coalition of Prime Minister Andrej Babis' populist ANO party, the far-right SPD and the eurosceptic Motorists will introduce a bill to cancel the monthly user's fee for public media for senior citizens, young people and companies.
SPD chief Tomio Okamura said the proposal was the first step toward the government's plan to cancel the user's fees altogether and bring financing fully under the state budget.
"Our voters want the end of user fees," Okamura told reporters in comments broadcast on Czech Television after a meeting of the coalition chiefs.
The public Czech Television and Czech Radio play a large role in the country's media space, with Czech Television claiming to be the most watched television among viewers aged 15 and over, with a 29% market share of that audience, including its various channels of entertainment and news.
Czech Television and Czech Radio each had trust of 59% of Czechs in a 2025 Reuters Institute survey, the highest ratings among Czech media included in the poll.
CZECH TV PROTESTS
Czech Television said the cut would make it impossible to meet its public service commitments.
"General Director Hynek Chudarek and the entire CT leadership will continue to take all steps aimed at maintaining the current functional fee system, and in its current extent," it said in an email.
It was not immediately clear how large the funding cut would be under the proposal. Okamura said funding would return to levels of 2024, before a slight increase in fees by the previous parliament.
Czech Television has a budget of 8.5 billion crowns ($402.54 million) for 2026, mostly from the user fees that are 155 crowns ($7.36) per month.
The introduction of the bill by members of parliament means it will skip wider discussion that a government-sponsored bill would have in the legislative process.
Pavol Szalai, the head of the Prague office of Reporters Without Borders, said the changes would make a significant change to a decades-old model that made public media a pillar of democracy.
"The proposal is not worthy of a democratic country, a member of the EU," he said.
Babis, a billionaire businessman and political ally of Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, a self-proclaimed advocate of 'illiberal democracy', has long railed against both public and private media, accusing them of lies.
Media independence was among key topics at the largest anti-government protest in years in Prague on Saturday, which organisers said drew 250,000.
($1 = 21.1160 Czech crowns)
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka, Additional reporting by Jason Hovet, Editing by William Maclean)
The coalition is introducing a bill to end user fees for seniors, young people, and companies, partially defunding public TV and radio.
Czech Television is the most watched channel for viewers over 15, and both Czech Television and Radio have the highest trust ratings in a 2025 survey.
Critics argue the move could weaken independent media and undermine the model that supports media as a pillar of democracy.
Czech Television's leadership pledges to maintain the current fee system, warning cuts would threaten its public service commitments.
Babis's party is part of the coalition introducing the bill, and he has previously criticized public and private media.
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