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EBU joins majority of Member States in opposing detailed EU rules Brussels, 4 November 2008: Today the European Commission’s Directorate General for Competition published a draft revision of the 2001 Broadcasting Communication dealing with the application of European State aid rules on public service broadcasting. “The European Commission’s approach ignores a joint statement by a large majority of Member States recently sent to Commissioner Neelie Kroes. In this letter Member States opposed substantial alterations of the existing Communication. The EBU firmly supports this position of the Member States,” declared EBU Director General Jean Réveillon. He went on to say that “if this extremely detailed version of the Broadcasting Communication were adopted, it could seriously reduce the scope for Member States to grant public service broadcasters a significant role in the information society." In a decision dated 22 October 2008, the European Court of First Instance made it clear that the definition of the public service broadcasters’ mission by the Member States should not be dependent on the range of programming offered by the commercial broadcasters. In its revised draft Communication, the Commission would oblige Member States to evaluate the market impact of any new PSB service before entrusting a public service broadcaster to provide it. This procedure would severely limit Member States’ potential to adapt public broadcasters’ remits in the light of technological developments and in order to better serve the public. “The EBU strongly supports Member States in their refusal to accept Commission measures such as the Communication which indirectly leads to a de facto European harmonization of PSB regulations,” stated Jean Réveillon. Note to Editors: European Broadcasting Union (EBU) |
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