In January 2003, the Swiss will shell out SFr 450.40 (roughly € 300) per year for the TV-radio licence fee, which is about 4.1% more than what they paid last year.

The company in charge of collecting licence fees has launched a TV campaign aiming to stem payment frauds which have been increasing since 1997. It seems that 7 to 8% of the households in Switzerland, equipped with televisions and radios, do not pay the TV-radio licence fees which have gone up from SFr 397.20 in 1993 to SFr 432.60 in 2000 (equivalent to a range of about € 264 to € 288).

The Federal Office of Communications recorded 770 offences of this nature in 1998 and up to 2300 in 2002. Those found guilty of not paying can be fined up to SFr 5,000 (€ 3,300)!