I am very pleased to be here in the beautiful city of Krakow – also because my last visit was in 1973. My thanks to the organizers for the kind invitation.

The official title of this session is “Public service broadcasting in the digital era”. But let me turn first to the over-arching theme of our meeting: Freedom of media.

Media freedom is a subject about which the European Broadcasting Union feels very strongly – as indeed I do personally.

It is one of the EBU’s core values, enshrined in the very first Article of our Statutes. And we devote much time and energy to defending media pluralism and the independence of our national media organizations.

But first let me say a few things about the EBU.

Briefly, we are an association which unites and serves 85 national broadcasters in 56 countries. Our “Europe” is far larger than the Europe of our school atlases, or of the European Union, as it reaches the eastern Mediterranean and into northern Africa.

So what does the EBU actually do?

Some of you may know and watch (or switch off) the Eurovision Song Contest, which has been going 55 years. The EBU is responsible for that. But I promise you: that is just the tip of a far more important iceberg. Our 350 staff in Geneva and Brussels – and in operational offices in Moscow, Washington, New York and Singapore – offer legal, technical and operational services, exchanges and co-productions of quality programming in both radio and television, and promotion of the values and importance of public service in the media.

The EBU was founded in 1950 and grew in time, supporting the process of transformation of state broadcasters into public service ones. That is: broadcasters serving the public, not a particular party or government. Serving citizens rather than consumers, with independent and pluralistic programming constituting the kind of wide-ranging national conversation necessary for any society to operate as a well-informed democracy.

Last year, when we held our annual summer General Assembly in Baku, Azerbaijan, our Members adopted a strong declaration calling on all governments to respect freedom of expression and freedom of the media.

It was not by chance, of course, that this declaration was issued in Azerbaijan. …

The EBU is a professional association, but as I mentioned we are focusing more and more on supporting the values of public service; we are becoming more “political” in face of the new challenges and dangers from political interference and government attempts to gain or regain control often under the pretext of the financial crisis.

The EBU has recently begun developing alliances with other organizations sympathetic to the cause of public service media, and of the important public service value of media freedom. Earlier this year, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Council of Europe. And we agreed with the OSCE’s Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatovic, that our two organizations would work together more closely on this important topic of common interest.

We also cooperate with UNESCO, with the International Federation of Journalists, with the International News Safety Institute, and others.

It was in response to the growing number of broadcasters facing obstruction and intrusion as well as financial, technical and political hurdles, that in 2009 the EBU launched its Special Assistance Project, to provide case-by-case support to Members in need – financial, political, technical or whatever.

Our assistance has included the provision of more than 700 hours of quality European programming, made available in a spirit of solidarity by some of the EBU’s more prosperous Members – notably ZDF and my own organization, RAI.

And with support from the OSCE, the Slovenian Government, the United Nations Development Programme and the Open Society Institute, we are providing training for editorial staff and consultancies on such areas as management and strategic reform.

The EBU’s Director General and myself as Vice-President have met prime ministers, finance ministers and other senior officials to promote reform, adequate financing and an appropriate legal framework for the national public broadcasters in the countries in question.

So far we have been active in Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro and Romania, among other countries. And more recently we have been very active in assisting Tunisitan Television and Radio is providing free, pluralistic and independent coverage of the first free elections since the “Arab Spring”.

And now to the topic of digitalization.

The EBU is convinced that public service media are more important than ever as we leave the analogue age and enter the digital era. With the multiplying number of TV channels and other information platforms of often dubious reliability – including blogs, social networking sites, twitter, and so on – true public service broadcasters are vital as trusted filters of reality. And as providers of quality content to all citizens – and not only to those who can afford highly-priced premium services.

Even at a time of enormous media fragmentation, European PSM are still regarded as guiding lights whose insights and information can be trusted, and should be sought. This is why, on average, Europe's PSM continue to enjoy a stable and very respectable audience share, of about 28%.

There is no question about it; well-functioning public service media – if they are wellfunctioning, and of course this is a big if – are guarantors of social inclusivity and cohesion. They occupy and shape the 'public space'. They encourage and provide a platform for a national dialogue, opening windows through which citizens can gain a deeper understanding of the sociopolitical realities of the society in which they live, and enrich their experience.

Just last month the EBU’s Executive Board and Director General had a lengthy discussion with Commission President Jose Barroso on the importance of sustainable independent public service media. I am glad to report that he agreed wholeheartedly with the views of the EBU, whose Members are the main providers of news about Europe and its institutions.

Public broadcasters should also be a creative force, driving and leading innovation in programme making, finding and fostering new talent, pushing boundaries and challenging expectations.

Every year public service broadcasters invest about 10 billion euros in diverse, original European content. On average, about 65% of our programming consists of self-made and commissioned productions. But it is their unique position that means that we are able to invest in programme genres that would otherwise be underserved, such as children's programmes - including kids' news; drama; cultural programmes; documentaries and educational formats.

So public service media – we are in the internet media – are, should be and can be, if adequately supported, and properly managed and regulated, truly pivotal to guarding and promoting the culture of each individual country.

Many neighbouring countries of the EU have high hopes of becoming EU members. This gives Brussels leverage to push for root and branch reforms in public service broadcasting as in other parts of society. Reforms that will give those organizations sustainability and autonomy. Reforms that will protect their independence and management from arbitrary or politicallymotivated interference.

That is why the EBU is working hard to create a community of public media working together at European level.

We already exchange approximately 4,000 high-quality performances yearly in radio, including live events, concerts, opera, jazz and festivals.

The Eurovision News Exchange offers more than 100 news items daily between broadcasters.

EBU active Members count 237 correspondents in Brussels alone – by far the greatest such presence in the European capital.

And next year the EBU will organise a European cinema week, showing the finest examples of European cinema production on Television screens across Europe.

Of course the EBU accepts and supports the so-called 'dual system'. But a well-functioning dual system is possible only if the public service broadcasters are given the means to fulfil their role in society.

Public service media, as I already mentioned, are facing new and increasing challenges; the digital world will create new competition and require new investments to allow them to be a at the forefront of the new multiplatform developments.

In such a context the greatest challenges is certainly adequate funding. In times of financial hardship it is all too easy for governments to use their public broadcasters' revenue streams as a political football. In some countries, such as France and Spain, the debate has revolved around the elimination of advertising, while in many others, cutting the licence fee has been leapt upon as a quick-fix saving for a nation in crisis.

Money spent on a good public service broadcaster is not a cost, but an investment. The activities of properly-funded public service broadcasters have a significant positive impact on the economies of their countries. To take the example of the BBC, its privilege of licence fee funding makes the BBC a major player in the UK's creative industries. and the BBC in turn has a responsibility to ensure that its investment in the economy works as a force for good – supporting jobs and businesses across the UK.

In 2008 a study commissioned by the BBC commissioned to explore the economic impact of its activity on the national economy found that the economic benefits of the BBC were farreaching, and delivered tangible value to digital and creative businesses across the UK.

In total this contribution was calculated to generate 9bn euros of economic value – about two pounds of economic value for each pound of licence fee.

Unfortunately, like the BBC, many public service broadcasters in Europe are today facing deep budget cuts, together with growing political pressure. And it is extremely telling that all European countries that score highly in terms of freedom of expression and the media also boast strong independent sustainable public service media. Countries suffering from weak government-controlled state media tend to have poor records on other basic freedoms.

Some EBU Members in South East Europe struggle to operate on annual budgets of less than 10 million euros. These chronically underfunded broadcasters face a double dilemma, as they are in dire need of modernising their infrastructures and training staff at a time when they are facing the high additional costs of digitization and the preservation of those national treasures that are the audiovisual archives.

IN such a situation the EBU is doing its best to make a difference.

And if we are to make a difference, it is essential for us that any changes and support in the media are made in synchrony with sustainable political progress.

The EBU has drawn up an extensive plan which has been approved by the Zagreb-based Association of Public Service Media in South East Europe, which brings together a number of the EBU’s Members in the region in a self-help regional grouping.

We hope that, with the support of the European Commission, this project can be launched very soon. In Sarajevo last week, officials of the European Commission said they hoped that baseline research will be conducted in the first quarter of next year, and actual implementation begin in summer 2012 within a framework partnership agreement between the EBU and the Commission.

The activities need to be inclusive, regional, all-embracing, reasoned and comprehensive. They should involve all public media and all stakeholders in the region, including civil society, by calling on the finest traditions of European solidarity and determination.

There is a formidable mountain to climb, but we are optimistic that we can succeed, because the right organizations are on board and they all agree on the fundamental issues. For its part, the EBU brings to the table a bulging portfolio of experience.

Of course, it is not possible simply to impose a set of ideals on a region and on a national culture. Such a change must come from within. Desire for change must be marked by regional ownership, with the various media stakeholders enabling and learning from each other.

But the European Union does now have some very useful levers at its command.

As I mentioned, President Barroso has said that public service media play an essential role in guaranteeing freedom of expression and media pluralism. In that context, the EBU welcomes creation, by Vice-President Kroes, of the new high-level group on freedom and pluralism of the media in the EU. We are more than ready to participate in its work.

Even more welcome is the Commission’s statement, in its annual enlargement strategy document adopted this month, that it will consider the independence and sustainability of public broadcasters and other media outlets as a key element in the overall assessment process of candidate countries.

Under the section Ensuring freedom of expression in the media, the report reads: "It is essential that the enlargement countries guarantee open and pluralistic media landscapes, which allow for a culture of critical and independent journalism (...) The Commission will closely monitor developments in the framework of existing agreements and structured dialogues with the enlargement countries. It will further integrate these issues into accession negotiations."

And just last week the European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee approved an amendment the draft report on neighbourhood policy underlining “the importance of independent, sustainable and accountable public media services, to provide quality, pluralistic and diverse content, reminding that free and independent public media always plays a crucial role on the 8 deepening of democracy, in the greatest involvement of the civil society in public affairs and for empowering citizens on the path to democracy; …”

To conclude, the thinking and the leverage are clearly running in favour of the view that public service media still have an important role to play in the digital era.

The EBU could not agree more!

Thank you.