The European Audiovisual Observatory on Thursday 5 January published a study on the European audiovisual landscape revealing that one in five (19%) private TV channels and more than a third of video on demand (SVOD) services in Europe are owned by US companies.
These companies are all pan-European and serve several markets. The Walt Disney Company, for example, is present in 45 television markets in the territory, compared to 40 for Netflix. However, their strategies for conquering Europe differ: some have a single headquarters to target different markets (Netflix) while others set up their headquarters in several countries (Warner Bros. Europe).
The country they are established in within the EU determines the competent jurisdiction to enforce the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD). However, the largest hub of establishment is Ireland, a Member State that has not yet transposed the AVMSD (see EUROPE 13075/23).
More generally, 1/4 of the top 50 TV groups and more than a third of the top 50 SVOD groups have a non-European parent company. If they have headquarters in the EU or retransmit to it via satellite, they are subject to the AVMSD obligations, in particular as regards quotas and the prominence of European works (see EUROPE 13063/29).
Furthermore, the study finds that a quarter of audiovisual media services are on-demand services, 97% of which are in the private sector.
Read the study: https://aeur.eu/f/4t3 (Original version in French by Hélène Seynaeve)