Brussels, 29/03/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 29 March, the European Commission sent a letter to 16 member states requesting them to provide information on implementation of the audiovisual media services directive, which was to be transposed into national law by 19 December 2009 at the latest. This request was just one of the fact-finding efforts being made by the Commission to ensure that national legislation on the media in all member states complies with the rules of the directive right down to the smallest detail. Issues raised vary from one member state to the next depending on the method of directive implementation employed.
The audiovisual media services directive, which took effect on 10 March 2010, ensures a single market and guarantees legal certainty for Europe's TV and audiovisual industry by creating a level playing field for both broadcast and on-demand audiovisual media services across frontiers. It replaces the “Television without Frontiers” directive by extending the provisions therein, especially in relation to the current reality of the digital world. The new directive preserves cultural diversity, protecting children and consumers, while safeguarding media pluralism and combating racial and religious hatred. It is based on the principle of “country of origin”. A first analysis of national measures for transposing the directive was completed for the following 16 member states: Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Romania, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Slovakia and Sweden. After this first analysis, the Commission sent a letter to the countries concerned in order to verify to what extent they have remained in line with the provisions of the directive. Three member states (Poland, Portugal and Slovenia) have, however, not yet notified to the Commission measures taken to implement the directive into their national law and are currently subject to infringement procedures (see EUROPE 10167). At present, the Commission is in the process of analysing the measures notified by the rest of the member states (Austria, Cyprus, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Lithuania and Latvia), following which a second round of letters may be sent during the second quarter of 2011.
Issues raised by the Commission mainly concern the following: - the country of origin principle, audiovisual commercial communications (including product placement), basic obligations under the directive, the right of reply, the protection of minors, promoting European works, events of major importance to be broadcast on free-to-air (FTA) television, and cooperation between regulators. A response to the above is expected within the next 10 weeks. (I.L./transl.jl)