SERAFE AG to remain the collection agency for the radio and television fee

Biel/Bienne, 16.09.2024 - SERAFE AG will continue to collect the household radio and television fee for the federal government after 2025. On 14 September 2024, the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) awarded SERAFE AG the mandate for the period 2026 to 2034 following an open tender process. Their bid offered the best price-performance ratio.

DETEC has extended SERAFE AG's mandate to collect the radio and television fee. The company, based in Pfäffikon (SZ), presented a convincing implementation concept and submitted the most advantageous bid. According to the criteria published in the specifications, the bid submitted by SERAFE AG achieved the highest overall score. The providers had to demonstrate, among other things, that they have extensive experience in the areas of fee collection, data collection and data protection, and that they have an efficient IT system.

Remuneration

SERAFE AG has offered around CHF 158 million or around CHF 17.5 million per year as remuneration for the entire term of the contract (based on the call for tenders: 3.7 million households, excluding VAT). This means that the flat-rate remuneration is slightly lower than before - however, it is not possible to make a direct comparison as the requirements of the previous and new specifications are not identical. There are also other factors that influence the level of remuneration: the rise in the number of households liable to pay the fee, the level of VAT, and now inflation. In addition, further expenses also have to be financed by the fee such as the collection costs and fees for post office counter deposits (see fact sheet).

Tendering of the mandate

SERAFE AG's new mandate begins on 1 January 2026 and ends on 31 December 2034. The current contract with DETEC expires on 31 December 2025. In order to ensure that the radio and television fee can be levied from 2026, OFCOM carried out a public tender process on behalf of DETEC and in collaboration with an external expert in the area of procurement. The new specifications were published on the simap platform on 31 January 2024. SERAFE AG and another company submitted bids by the deadline of 30 April. For procurement law reasons, the competitor's name cannot be published.

Address for enquiries

Federal Office of Communications OFCOM
Press service, +41 58 460 55 50, media@bakom.admin.ch