The President of the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association has disclosed that a majority of advertisers in Ghana are moving to the digital media space instead of operating on free-to-air stations.

In the wake of this migration, a lot of stations have lost much Ad revenue.

This, Cecil Thomas Sunkwa-Mills, said is because there are now alternative platforms used in the dissemination of information.

According to him, a lot of stations have run into debt and are even unable to pay for their regular licensing.

Mr Sunkwa-Mills whilst contributing to the Series V of the Joy Change-Speakers on JoyNews said in the wake of this apparent financial struggle amongst the traditional stations, there has been a call on the government to pass a bill called the advertising council bill which will enable the regulation of the advertising industry.

He explained that with the steep competition for adverts, many stations are forced to engage in deals with advertisers. These advertisers negotiate on a payment period of at least 120 days however, even after the deadline, the advertisers are still unable to pay.

“As I speak, I know stations are even now struggling to pay their regular licensing. The other big issue, which is also another bill that we are also praying that it’s looked up and passed is coming from advertising revenue which is the main source of revenue for free-to-air stations.

"Whiles we’ve seen a reduction in terms of ads spent on radio and TV on the traditional platform, a lot of advertisers have moved to digital. This has also depressed the revenue income of a lot of stations.

He continued that "So we’re asking the government to pass the advertising council bill. This will enable us to regulate the advertising industry. What is happening is because there’s so much competition for adverts, a lot of stations go in for deals and the advertisers turn to give you a payment period of sometimes 120 days or more."

"So what happens is that stations actually will run adverts but there’s no cash flow and payment is due in 120 plus days,” he told host Samson Lardy Anyenini on June 8, 2023.

He expressed that in other countries, there is a clear regulation on the advertisement and that Ghana can also achieve the same if the advertising council bill is passed.