More than 150 members of the EBU community have actively contributed to the Vision2020 project, delegates attending the final session of the 70th EBU General Assembly in Malta learned today (28 June). 

Ruurd Bierman, who is leading the project, told the conference that "Members have embraced the journey into the future". Vision2020 aims to generate big ideas and recommendations to help PSM create strategies for 2020 and beyond.

Mr Bierman said that since the 2012 Winter General Assembly, in Geneva, the Vision2020 project team had completed the initial phase of collecting facts, trends, challenges and developing scenarios. Principal concerns identified by Members include funding, the rise of pay TV, new media and technologies, the influence of and dependence on governments, audience support, external competition and quality issues.

At the same time, EBU Members have voiced confidence about the qualities that distinguish their indispensable contribution to society, mainly the quality and relevance of content, trust, the generation of objective information, local content, culture and education, distinctiveness, and audience interaction.   

Later in the Vision2020 session, Members staged a discussion on changes in the media ecosystem, which is one of the central trends identified by the three Experts Groups looking at Content & Audiences; Distribution & Technology; Governance, Role & Remit. 

Following presentations of case studies by Norwegian Member NRK and Flemish broadcaster VRT, delegates debated the merits of developing bespoke platforms or entering into external alliances with gatekeepers who provide internet content, such as Netflix, Hulu and Youtube.

"Some of the most pressing questions relate to content access and navigation," said Mr Bierman. "Do we rely on our own platforms and Electronic Programme Guides, or do we cooperate with third parties? The experience of VRT, which has experimented with an over-the-top catch-up service in cooperation with Belgian market players and NRK, which has coproduced drama with Netflix, show there is not just one single option. Members must define strategies that best serve their interests."

Earlier, EBU Director General Ingrid Deltenre told Members that "when we look to the future, it is a common future and one that we face together".

"We are spending a great deal of energy identifying just what that future holds – the threats, the challenges and the rewards it may bring," Ms Deltenre said.

The Experts Groups will meet for a third and final round of discussions in September. Their preliminary findings will be presented to a meeting of the EBU Executive Board in October ahead of the Winter General Assembly, in Geneva, in December.

The EBU's strategy and services will be reviewed according to the project's conclusions, which will be presented to the 2014 Summer Assembly.