Swiss voters decisively rejected proposed changes to the fees that households in the country must pay to finance the public broadcast system.

The proposition was shot down in a 38% to 62% referendum vote on Sunday.

Brought forth largely by the right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP) and the youth wing of the center-right Free Democratic Party (FDP), the proposition would have cut mandatory annual household usage fees for radio, television and internet from 335 to 200 Swiss francs (€370, $430).

The fee is the highest in the world and the Swiss government has already moved to broaden payment exemptions and reduce the fee to SF300 by 2029.

Proponents argued for partial privatization, more sports and entertainment

Sunday's proposal aimed at forcing the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG) — which is financed by the mandatory license fee and has a statutory information mandate — to cut its own programming to save money.

It also called on the SRG to sell airtime to private companies that could provide sports and entertainment content.

Prior to the vote, the SRG and more than 1,000 university professors argued that strong public broadcast services are fundamental in fostering democracy and social cohesion.

Public broadcasters as a defense against the spread of disinformation

SRG comprises 17 television and radio channels broadcasting in the country's four national languages; German, French, Italian and Romansh.

Prior to the referendum, SRG CEO Susanne Wille announced cost-cutting measures expected to save roughly 17% of the broadcaster's annual 270 million franc budget by 2029.

Around 900 full-time positions are to be cut as part of the cost-saving regime.

Referendum backers further argued that SRG stations have a left-leaning bias, whereas public media supporters said the cuts would open the door to the virulent spread of disinformation. 

"A major dismantling ⁠of Switzerland's media infrastructure has been prevented," said Laura Zimmermann, who led the campaign ⁠against the cuts. "Our ​access to reliable information remains protected."

Edited by: Jenipher Camino Gonzalez