Members of the European Parliament witnessed the potential of Connected TV services via HbbTV and YouView at a dedicated conference today (6 March) in Brussels.

The conference was organized by MEP Petra Kammerevert, who is currently preparing a report on Connected TV.  The HbbTV and YouView demonstrations fuelled reflections on the regulatory implications of Connected TV among MEPs and stakeholders.

“The media is not a simple merchandise”, said Mrs Kammerevert. “Connected TV raises regulatory questions about content, not just on technical issues. We need to focus on content to ensure diverse and pluralistic media”. 

She also underlined that those who invest heavily in producing quality content should be easy to find in the Connected TV environment.

Her comments followed an assessment of the regulatory aspects on Connected TV by ZDF Director of Legal Affairs and Chairman of the EBU Legal and Policy Committee, Peter Weber.

“The AVMS is a reliable legal framework for television, but rules are needed for less regulated sectors,” he said, warning that “a multitude of offers does not ensure, in itself, quality. There needs to be investment in audiovisual content”.

Klaus Illgner, Managing Director of the Institut für Rundfunktechnik, presented HbbTV as a “business-neutral platform” which is developing into a “worldwide attractive standard”. Asserting that consumers still mainly buy Smart TV sets to access linear content, he noted that preserving signal and service integrity is one of the key questions raised by the advent of Connected TV devices.

YouView Chief Financial Officer David Dorans presented the YouView box, which is designed to give wide access to high quality content for all UK consumers. “At its heart, it’s really about TV,” he said.

These discussions will feed into Petra Kammerevert’s work on the regulatory aspects raised by Connected TV. Her report will be up for adoption by the European Parliament in late May this year. 

In 2011 the EBU issued its Principles for Internet Connected and Hybrid Television in Europe, and continues to foster content and signal integrity, a safe viewing environment for minors and other factors that will ensure Connected TV is a positive force for broadcasters and the public.

For more information see: http://www3.ebu.ch/cms/en/policies/initiatives/hybrid