Television packages in Slovakia could face price increases as the Slovak Association of Cable Telecommunications (SAKT) warns of impending fee hikes from the Slovak Performing Rights Society (SOZA) for the use of musical works. The association, which represents over 1.3 million television subscribers, claims the increases will inevitably be passed on to consumers.
SAKT members include major operators such as Telekom, Digi TV, UPC, Canal+ (Skylink and freeSAT), Orange, Antik, 4ka, Slovanet, and Satro. According to SAKT President Vlastimil Lakatoš, the organization is “outraged” by SOZA’s planned increases, calling them “unjustifiably high” and warning that maintaining affordable prices for Slovak households will be impossible without a reasonable agreement.
The dispute centers on SOZA’s long-term practice of increasing fees at a rate SAKT considers excessive, arguing that the fees do not reflect the actual proportion of music content within the overall audiovisual offerings of television providers. SAKT had proposed a 40 percent increase, which they say was accepted by two other collective management organizations, but SOZA rejected the offer, insisting on its own model that includes significant increases to fixed fees and a share of operators’ revenues.
SAKT deems the revenue-sharing demand unacceptable, further arguing that SOZA only represents musical works, which they contend do not constitute the dominant portion of content broadcast by operators. “We perceive similar reactions from other areas of the market where SOZA operates, most recently with the disproportionate and unjustified increase in fees for the use of musical works in cities and municipalities,” Lakatoš stated. “We will not tolerate senseless increases in fees that will be reflected in the final prices for our customers.”
SOZA has responded to the allegations, dismissing SAKT’s claims as a “false campaign.” In a statement released on February 28, 2026, SOZA stated that its fee schedule only includes a 4 percent inflation adjustment compared to the previous year. The organization also emphasized that this increase does not automatically translate into higher TV package prices, as suggested by SAKT.
SOZA attributes the conflict to a long-standing legal dispute dating back to 2020, concerning the appropriate remuneration for authors for the retransmission of their musical works. They claim SAKT has failed to increase these payments for nearly 15 years, despite repeated promises. SOZA further alleges that although operators are not increasing author payments, they are consistently raising prices for consumers. The organization is currently pursuing legal action to reduce author fees by as much as 67 percent, a claim that was reportedly rejected by the Bratislava City Court. SOZA also points to the Czech Republic, where operators pay 30 percent higher fees without issue.
“We must consider the statements of retransmission operators rejecting any gradual adjustments to remuneration for artists as cynical,” said Ľubomír Burgr, Chairman of the SOZA Board. “Last year, SOZA paid royalties for the broadcasting of musical works to 70,458 authors from around the world. We assume that TV operators do not pay their employees the same wages as they did 15 years ago.”
Similar disputes between operators and rights holders have occurred frequently in the Slovak market. Associations of operators have previously raised concerns about unreasonable conditions or price demands, ultimately accepting them and passing the increased costs on to consumers. This pattern was observed with significant fee increases for Markíza and JOJ, the removal of numerous Czech channels from offerings, and restrictions on archive functionality, preventing viewers from skipping commercials.
While operators have publicly protested these conditions, they have subsequently negotiated and accepted them, with the resulting costs invariably reflected in service prices. It remains to be seen whether the current dispute with SOZA will follow a similar trajectory, potentially leading to higher costs for television subscribers.
