The Digital News Transformation Fund (DNTF) received 79 applications for Round 3, with applicants requesting a combined R70 million.
Of the 67 eligible applications, just over half came from publishers whose primary audience is a single province, municipality or local community. More than half publish in an African language or in more than one language.
Phase 1 of Round 3 covered eligibility screening, due diligence and independent scoring.
Fund manager Tshikululu Social Investments completed the eligibility and due diligence checks and excluded 12 applications at the screening stage. Nine did not hold current membership of the Press Council of South Africa, a requirement set out in the DNTF Funding Policy.
The remaining three failed to meet other published eligibility criteria, including requirements relating to original public interest journalism and the minimum audience size threshold.
The 67 eligible applications, representing funding requests amounting to R62.9 million, were then scored by the Adjudication Committee. The Committee is independent of Google, the Association of Independent Publishers (AIP) and Tshikululu.
Following scoring, the Adjudication Committee shortlisted 55 applicants for Phase 2.
Of the 67 eligible applicants, 34 (51%) described their primary audience as a single province, municipality or local community rather than a national audience. Thirty-seven (55%) publish in an African language or in multiple languages, with isiZulu the most commonly represented. The remaining 30 (45%) publish in English only. Eligible applications came from every province except the Free State.
Applicants are at different stages of digital development. Forty-two (63%) operate an actively updated website, while 27 (40%) reported using more advanced digital tools such as analytics platforms or a content management system (CMS). Eight (12%) have only a basic or static website, and five (7%) reported having no digital presence beyond their print publication.
Social media use is widespread, with 84% of applicants maintaining an active presence on social platforms. Many applicants described digital transformation as central to their long-term sustainability.
Thirty-nine applicants (58%) applied for two-year funding and 28 (42%) for one-year funding.
Round 3 now moves into Phase 2. The 55 shortlisted organisations have been invited to submit full applications, which close on 9 October 2026.
The Digital News Transformation Fund is a partnership between Google and the Association of Independent Publishers, administered by Tshikululu Social Investments.
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