egta answers the AVMS consultation
30 September 2015
Following the adoption of its Digital Market Strategy in May 2015, the European Commission is currently preparing a review of the Directive 2010/13/EU on Audiovisual Media Services (AVMSD), which regulates the audiovisual industry in the European Union.
In this process, the Commission launched a public consultation from the 6th July to the 30th September to gather input from civil society and industry stakeholders.
egta asked the Commission to take into account the following objectives:
- Liberalisation of advertising rules: the current rules should allow more flexibility for industry players to develop their activities and compete internationally.
- Clarification and simplification: new rules should be focused on a core set of principles: editorial responsibility, signal integrity, protection of minors and consumers, country of origin principle. They should avoid any vague or unnecessary provisions that could create legal uncertainty and hinder economic growth.
- Level playing field: the new set of rules should apply to all audiovisual content in the EU regardless of the device through which it is accessed. In an era of media convergence, it is no longer relevant to make a legal distinction between linear and non-linear content, nor is it to differentiate “TV-like” programmes and other kinds of audiovisual content.
Answers to the consultation, including egta’s, are available here.
Next steps: the European Commission is expected to publish a proposal for a revised Directive mid-2016, which will then be negotiated and adopted via the co-decision process by the European Parliament and the Council.
