*** FREDERIC SOJCHER, PIERRE-JEAN BENGHOZI: Quel modèle audiovisuel européen ? L'Harmattan (5-7 rue de l'Ecole-Polytechnique, F-75005 Paris. Tel: (33-1) 40467920 - fax: 43258203 - E-mail: harmattan1@wanadoo.fr - Internet: http: //http://www.editions-harmattan.fr ). 2003, 270 pp, 22 euros. ISBN 2-7475-5030-3.
Does a European audio-visual model exist? This was the burning question posed during a colloquium organized by the European Audiovisual Seminar on which this book is based. It also looks at the Union's policy in this area, the stakes for the industry in Europe, the mission for public television channels and the balance of forces with the USA. The question is still pertinent because Europe pioneered the animated pictures with the beginning of cinema, whereas the twenty first century opened with a fatalism about the almost total domination of the industry by the Americans. European cinema appears increasingly less able to exist in its present form with the incursion of national cinemas limiting and confining the European indigenous markets. With regard to television, an area where Europe developed original and creative public television models, it is now experiencing, according to the writers of this book, a decline in its originality and a dumbing-down in its programmes. Commercial pay channels, as well as satellite TV are the order of the day in an increasingly homogenous European landscape. These problems are comprehensively examined via a multi-disciplinary approach - historical and economic perspectives combined with reflections on the relationship between the industry and communication.
The first part looks at the stakes for the European model in this area. The cinematographer and Senior Lecturer at the Université de Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne - Frédéric Sojcher sets the scene by denouncing the gap between the stakes at play and the means for implementing and supporting the European audio-visual sector , which he describes as a "double discourse". His collaborator, Director of the research at the CNRS at the Research Management Centre at the Ecole polytechnique, charts the emergence of new European audio-visual models characterising a “substantial uniformisation and homogenisation of underpinning models”, even if some strategies of resistance and difference successfully resist. The second part of the book looks at the specific nature of the European audio-visual model in an historical perspective, whereas the third part more closely examines the current situation. Yvon Thiec, Head of Eurocinema, the Association of Cinema and Television Producers in the audio-visual field meticulously describes the US omnipresence in the definition and negotiation of European audio-visual policies. This angle is completed in the official documents of the State Department. The fourth part focuses on questions of diffusion and programme promotion, the fifth looks at the role of the spectator, as well as consummation modes and programme perception. All grist to the mill with regard to the economic and cultural education currently being experienced by Europe Michel Theys
*** La régulation de l'accès à la télévision numérique. Goulots d'étranglement techniques, marchés intégrés verticalement et nouvelles formes de concentration des médias. Observatoire européen de l'audiovisuel (76 allée de la Robertsau, F-67000 Strasbourg. Tel: (33-3) 88144400 - fax: 88144419 - E-mail: obs@obs.coe.int - Internet: http: //http://www.obs.coe.int ). "IRIS Spécial" series. 2004, 139 pp. 44 euros. ISBN 92-871-5400-7.
Simply pressing on a button, in this case a remote control for the television, now provides - a infinite number of programmes on all subjects and in all languages. With the arrival of digital TV, the horizon now available on our screens is so far away that it is practically invisible. Behind this staggering offer of channels are two extremely complex structures: property and the technical capacity for digital diffusion. Moreover, it is now becoming increasingly difficult to define who controls the means used for diffusion and to fully understand the structures behind the digital TV providers. As the number of channels gradually increases, the overall vision becomes rather hazy. Suddenly, certain concerns come to the fore regarding the fundamental rights of a free and pluralist media. What are the technical means that determine the contents received by the end-user? How are they controlled and in what conditions? How does current European and national legislation protect citizens' rights to have a free and pluralist media? These are the questions dealt with by the Observatoire européen de l'audiovisuel elaborated in partnership with the Institut du droit de l'information and the Institut du droit européen des medias. Given that the development of digital television and regulation on access to this new diffusion technique has completely transformed traditional ways of seeing media regulation in its role of guardian of freedom of expression and information, the book (providing reflections from a workshop for specialists in this area) explains in a detailed way the technical functioning of this medium and reveals the real dangers of monopolies taking root if European or national regulation does not evolve at the same rate.
The first part of the report presents the reports and discussions from the workshop. The second part includes the written version of the reports, which help define the technical, legal and economic aspects of the phenomenon, as well as presenting possible mode of regulation. It also examines how problems are tackled in the Community directive on “access” and asks whether it would not be convenient to class them in the domain of media and monopolies. Other orientations envisaged are also explored, such as the option of European competition law or a laissez faire policy, as applied in the USA. A third section provides general contextual elements to help understand the “access” directive better. The report provides a remarkable assortment and glossary of digital television and clarifies the technical specificities involved. A good reference guide! (MT)
*** GERARD EYMERY, IGNACIO GARCIA ALVES, LOÏC TRIBOT LA SPIERE: Le paradoxe des Télécoms: constat et analyse. Editions Publisud (15 rue des Cinq-Diamants, F-75013 Paris. Tel: (33-1) 45807850 - fax: 45899415 - E-mail: edipublisud@wanadoo.fr ). "Prospective Stratégique" series. 2003, 223 pp, 29.50 euros. ISBN 2-86600-969-X.
It is a bit of an understatement to say that Gérard Eymery, who was Director General at Télé-Monte-Carlo, Managing Director of Cogecom/France Multimedia/Wanadoo, Director Delegate for France Télévison development, president of the Ecole nationale supérieure Louis Lumière, is one of the most renown specialists in France on the new telecommunications and electronic media services for the mass market. He is therefore highly qualified for writing this book. He was assisted in his task by president of Arthur D. Little France, Ignacio Garcia Alves and the Delegate General of the Strategic Prospects Study Centre, the editor of the series in which the book is included.
The liberalisation adventure in the telecom sector began relatively recently compared to other sectors. After decades of stability (a telephone connected by two cables to another telephone) it has just embarked upon a massive transformation from the technical innovation side of things (GSM, UMTS, GPRS, Satellites, Internet, Multimedia, SMS, Wap, I-Mode, fibre optics etc) as well as it social impact: the number of text messages sent at the new year was not expected and clogged up the servers, whereas the great hopes invested in Wap did not materialise despite its colossal but untapped infrastructure. The capacity for anticipating consumer requirements and uses is patently lacking. The expansion of recent services and infrastructure has led to new competitors, inexperienced, and start ups just a few months on the market. After having shaken up the “dinosaurs”, most of these actors are now extinct and those who remain will disappear in the short or medium term. The number of bankruptcies has already reached record levels and restructuring has ensued. In 2000 and 2001 companies were bombarded on a daily basis by supposedly competitive telecommunications offers. In 2002-03, it was clearly private subscribers who were harassed by the pseudo proposals of big dividends. War broke out in other sectors with the same problem of competition, which deserves a closer and more comprehensive examination. Without digressing, the authors analyse the massive influx of new non-economically viable newcomers, going beyond the destabling of the existing operators and the historic competition experienced in past crises. The analyses constitute a stimulating reflection exercise and condense in a comprehensive manner the information at hand on the telecommunications sector, which has over the last ten years alone has experienced massive developments and changes. (JNi)
*** HARTMUT RÜDIGER PETER, NATALIA TIKHONOV (Editor): Universitäten als Brücken in Europa - Les universités: des ponts à travers l´Europe. Studien zur Geschicht der studentischen Migration - Etudes sur l´histoire des migrations étudiantes. Peter Lang (1 Moosstrasse, Postfach 350, CH-2542 Pieterlen, Switzerland. Tel: (41-32) 3761717 - fax: 376 1727 - E-mail: publicity@peterlang.com - Internet: http: //http://www.peterlang.de ). 2003, 339 pp. ISBN 3-631-39890-5.
During two symposiums at the German University of Halle in December 2000 and November 2001, around fifteen historians, sociologists and political scientists from several European countries examined the situation experienced by foreign students in different European countries over different historical periods. Universities in France, Germany and Switzerland were highlighted during the nineteenth century and at the beginning of the twentieth. Several contributions deal with the experience of Russian students. A history book, published in French and German, with summaries and essays in other languages. (PB)
*** PETER BACHMAIER (Editor): Nationalstaat oder multikulturelle Gesellschaft ? Die Minderheitenpolitik in Mittel-, Ost- und Südosteuropa im Bereich des Bildungswesens 1945-2002. Peter Lang (see address attached). "St. Pöltener Osteuropastudien" series, No. 1. 2003, 294 pp.. ISBN 3-631-38949-3.
In this selection of academic essays, the situation experienced by minorities in central, eastern and south eastern Europe is presented with an examination of the legal, demographic and political aspects of the education sector. Taking into account the importance of education for a country and collective identities and ethnic groups, the fifteen authors who contributed to this book provide useful information on the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Kosovo Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, Russia, Byelorussia and Moldavia. An n excellent panorama of the education sector experienced by ethnic and linguistic minorities in these countries on our continent. (PB)
*** KLAUS BREUER, KLAUS BECK: Are European Vocational Systems up to the Job ? Peter Lang (se address attached). "Konzepte des Lehrens und Lernens" series, No. 8. 2002, 169 p.. ISBN 3-631-39550-7.
This book looks at teaching and training in Member States. It is edited by two university lecturers from the University of Gutenberg in Mayence, and provides accounts from members of the work group set up by the Commission in the Cost action project "Flexibility, Transferability and Mobility as Targets of Vocational Education and Training”. The authors reveal the many significant differences, both cultural and structural, as well as the use of a variety of different scientific and technological terms sometimes used. Germany, for example, has a dual system combining education with industry which does not exist to the same extent in Italy or the United Kingdom. (LD)
*** GYORGY SZELL, GIAN PRIMO CELLA (Editor): The Injustice at Work. An International View on the World of Labour and Society. Peter Lang (see address attached). "Work - Technology - Organization - Society" series, No. 17. 2002, 633p p.. ISBN 3-631-39682-1.
Edited by sociologists teaching at the Universities of Osnabrück and Milan respectively, this book is the reflection of two academic symposiums. It looks at globalisation and new technologies in the workplace and the resistance it provokes. The way in which social actors, governments, companies, unions response to the issue is at the heart of these reflections. (LD)
*** GERARD MONDELLO (Editor): Principe de précaution et Industrie. L'Harmattan (see address attached). 1998, 276 pp. ISBN 2-7384-6257-X.
The precautionary principle now penetrates legislation on the environment in western economies and the areas of application stretch from industrial activities and chemicals to agro-foods, as well as in biotechnology and genetics. Aware that too restrictive legislation could sterilise research and all industrial progress, the authors, all from the world of academia, illustrate that a good understanding of this principle, together with the implementation of concertation procedures and institutional negotiations between the different economic actors ought to produce the conception of contracts on costs for information on new advances and innovative products. (LD)
*** Interaction Between the EU Common Fisheries Policy and the Habitats and Birds Directives. Institute for European Environment Policy (28 Queen Anne's Gate, UK-SW1H 9AB London. Tel: (44-20) 77992244 - fax: 77992600 - E-mail: central@ieeplondon.org.uk - Internet: http://www.ieep.org.uk ). April 2004, 24pp. ISBN 1-87390-648-X.
Although the Union and its Member States have made many commitments to protecting biodiversity in European seas, they have only been able to chalk up limited progress, mainly due to the fact that it is difficult to determine the legal competencies of each of the different players. This explains why Daniel Owen in this document examines the relationship between European fisheries policy and directives on environmental conservation. He explores the action taken as part of European fisheries policy, as well as alternative policies. He studies the legal bases of the relevant papers and their juridical interpretation, as well as the sometimes difficult sharing out of competencies.
*** Politica Exterior. Estudios de Politica Exterior SA (6 Padilla. E-28006 Madrid. Tel: (34-91) 4312628 - fax: 5777252 - E-mail: revista@politicaexterior.com). July -August 2004, No. 100, 202 p. 11 euros. Subscription: 89 euros.
The publication is now celbrating its hundredth issue! In the seventeen years of its existence, from the fall of the Berlin Wall to current events, the pen is taken up by a wide range of columnists with talent for clarifying external policy and the state of the world. This issue is no exception to the rule and provides a number of articles on current issues of interest written by Spanish, American and French writers. Miguel Angel Cortés looks at the role of Spain as European Head of the Iberian-American community in an effort to prevent European becoming a walled fortress. Jacques Delors recalls the importance of knowledge and permanent education for ensuring a participative civil society and a healthy democracy, while Hubert Vedrine studies the western concerns and divergences. A small booklet accompanies this edition, providing an illustration on the left-hand page, as well as information on subjects assessed in previous editions on the right-hand page.
*** Dokumente. Gesellschaft für übernationale Zusammenarbeit e.V. (86 Dottendorfer Straße, D-53129 Bonn. Tel. (Editor.): (49-2) 289239805 - fax (editor.): 28690385 - E-mail: kontakt@guez-dokumente.org - Internet: http://www.guez-dokumente.org ). August 2004, No. 4, 108 pp, 3.90 euros. Subscription: 19.90 euros.
The main article this month focuses on European defence and security policy. It provides a detailed insight into French and German ideas of CFSP, the role of these two countries in the evolution of this concept, Franco-German brigade and the French nuclear doctrine. The article from the “commentary” section is entitled “Europas Duo, Frankreichs Duell" and examines the Franco-German relationship in light of internal faction fights in France, particularly the relationship between Chirac and Sarkozy.
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*** Newsletter du BTS. Bureau technique Syndical Européen pour la Santé et la Sécurité (Bd du Roi Albert II, B-1210 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 2240560 - fax: 2240561 - tutb@etuc.org - Internet: http: //tutb.etuc.org). Summer 2004, No. 22-23 April 2004, 76 p..
This special edition focuses on the joint BTS and European Confederation of Trade Unions conference, which aimed to devise a common health and safety strategy for the enlarged Europe. The newsletter draws attention to the importance, for improving living and working conditions, as well as for sustainable competitiveness, which is even more a sensitive issue with enlargement and Community legislation on health and safety at work. It looks at the impact of enlargement on the European union movement and casts an attentive eye on trends and needs of interested parties with regard to regulation in the workplace. National studies are used to back up the arguments.
*** Ökoenergie. Ökosoziales Forum österreich (13 Franz Jozefs-Kai, 1010 Vienna. Tel: (39-1) 53307970 - fax: 533079790 - E-mail: info@oesfo.at - Internet: http://www.oesfo.at ). June 2004, No. 55,30 pp..
As its name indicates, this review focuses on renewable energy. It looks at the new trends, political initiatives, as well as specific products for individuals (biomass heating, insulation, etc). The main article this month looks at nuclear energy.
Reviews in Brief
*** Internal Market Scoreboard. EFTA Surveillance Authority. July 2004, No.14, Brussels. This report presents some of the new legislation introduced, as well as macro-economic data and statistics in EFTA countries.