Billag
| Billag AG
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| legal form | Corporation |
| founding | 1997 |
| Seat |
Friborg FR Switzerland
|
| management | Ewout Kea (CEO) |
| Number of employees | 230 (2017) |
| sales | CHF 52 million |
| Branch | Debt collection |
| Website | www.billag.ch |
The Billag AG ( Swiss collection agency for radio and television reception fees , french organs suisse de perception of speech vance de réception des programs de radio et de télévision , Italian Ufficio svizzero di riscossione dei canoni radiotelevisivi ) is a Swiss subsidiary of Swisscom , the 1998-2018 was responsible for collecting radio and television reception fees. On January 1, 2019, she handed over this task to Serafe AG. The artificial name Billag is made up of the English "Bill" (invoice) and the abbreviation "AG" (for stock corporation), literally "Invoice AG". Since the legal form “AG” as part of the art term is no longer clear, it is added twice in accordance with the legal requirements.
history
Until 1998, reception fees were paid automatically with Swisscom's monthly telephone bill . In the course of the partial privatization of Swisscom, Swisscom was obliged to continue the collection until 2002 at the latest. That is why Swisscom founded the subsidiary Billag, which began collecting fees in early 1998. In 1999, in a public invitation to tender, Billag was awarded the contract to continue charging the fees. Even after that, Billag was able to defend its mandate.
On March 10, 2017, it became known that Billag AG would lose its mandate to collect radio and television fees. In a public tender by the Federal Office of Communication , Serafe AG , a subsidiary of Secon AG founded in 1979, was awarded the contract thanks to a better price-performance ratio and took over this task on January 1, 2019. The mandate runs until 2025. Since Billag AG received more than 90 percent of its income from collecting reception fees, Swisscom will completely close its 100% subsidiary by the end of September 2019. 230 employees are affected, around 50 employees in the Billag call center have been taken over by Callpoint. Until it closes, Billag will take care of the pending collection and debt enforcement procedures according to the previous system of reception fees.
activity
Billag provided information about the reporting and fee obligations and collected the reception fees in the name and for the account of the Swiss Confederation. She reported violations of the reporting obligation to OFCOM . The analogue institutions are called ARD ZDF Deutschlandradio Contribution Service in Germany and GIS in Austria.
In 2010 the Federal Council decided to introduce annual invoicing. In order to ensure a regular flow of funds, invoices are staggered in monthly tranches with around 250,000 invoices. A three-monthly invoice is also possible for a surcharge of CHF 2 per invoice. This could be requested from Billag by phone or online. Billag orders could create, in the debt collection procedures have an enforceable court decision the character.
The company employed around 280 people. The collection volume was 1.3 billion Swiss francs, of which Billag (after the introduction of the annual accounts) needed around 45 million for its own operations.
In addition to the broadcasting fees, Billag sent out invoices on behalf of SUISA (cooperative society for authors and publishers of music) for copyright compensation for the rights of authors of musical works.
Amount and use of radio and television fees
When calculating the fee, a distinction is made between private, commercial and commercial reception.
| Radio and television fees (as of 2011) | ||
| CHF / month | CHF / year | |
|---|---|---|
| Private radio reception | 14.10 | 169.15 |
| Private television reception | 24.45 | 293.25 |
| Commercial radio reception | 18.65 | 223.85 |
| Commercial television reception | 32.40 | 388.55 |
| Commercial radio reception Cat I (1–10 devices) | 18.65 | 223.85 |
| Commercial television reception Cat. I (1–10 devices) | 32.40 | 388.55 |
The fee income received is passed on to Bakom ( Federal Office of Communications ). This is used to finance the programming of SRG SSR and certain private broadcasting stations. It also finances the administrative expenses of Bakom (frequency monitoring) and the expenses of Billag AG. The Federal Council decides on the amount of the fees .
Fee obligation
The reception of radio and television programs, regardless of how the reception is achieved and which programs are being viewed, is subject to registration and payment. However, there are some restrictions, special regulations and exceptions.
Private households only have to pay one fee, regardless of the number of people living there. Car radios are included.
An additional fee has to be paid for each additional location, provided that it is used for three or more days per week and this for more than six months per year.
The fees for commercial or commercial reception depend on whether the devices are made available for third parties (commercial) or exclusively for employees (commercial). The calculation of the fees for commercial reception is based on categories (I: 1–10, II: 11–50, III: more than 50 devices). Demonstration devices are classified as Category I by companies, regardless of the number. Each location is also subject to a fee for companies. In addition, companies are usually also obliged to pay copyright fees. These are also collected by Billag, but billed separately.
Recipients of supplementary AHV / IV benefits under federal law can be exempted from the fees upon request.
If radio equipment is operated but is not reported to Billag, this is a criminal offense and can result in a fine of up to CHF 5,000 or criminal proceedings on the part of OFCOM .
criticism
In 2007 and 2008, the company carried out a campaign to “sensitize” the population in prime time by means of six computer-animated commercials, which were supposed to have a positive effect on the payment behavior of so-called black viewers, with a cost of 1.5 million francs for production alone. Not all spots were broadcast.
See also
Web links
- Billag website
- Legal basis: SR 784.40 Federal Act on Radio and Television (RTVG)
- Distribution of fee income by the Federal Office of Communications (Bakom) 2012 ( memo from February 26, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ Answer from Jonny Kopp, Head of Communications at Billag, dated November 3, 2014 to an e-mail request
- ↑ a b Billag loses order and fears for existence . In: 20 minutes , March 10, 2017
- ↑ Tages-Anzeiger: Nobody defeats Billag . ISSN 1422-9994 ( tagesanzeiger.ch [accessed on March 10, 2017]).
- ↑ Billag transfers the customer center to the call point and secures jobs. Billag AG press release of March 13, 2018, accessed December 30, 2018
- ↑ Billag . Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- ↑ Felix Schindler: The Billag's teeth are pulled . Tages-Anzeiger Switzerland. March 10, 2014. Retrieved March 10, 2014.
- ↑ Gabriel Brönnimann: Billag CEO: "The spot is no longer broadcast" . View Switzerland. December 17, 2008. Retrieved February 5, 2018.
- ↑ Lukas Rüttimann, Daniel Meier and Gabriel Brönnimann: With a terror spot - Billag intimidates TV viewers . View Switzerland. December 16, 2008. Retrieved February 5, 2018.