| Author (Person) | Davies, Eric | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Publisher | ProQuest Information and Learning | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Series Title | In Focus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Series Details | 20.1.01 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Publication Date | 20/01/2001 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content Type | News, Overview, Topic Guide | In Focus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background On 16 January 2001, the European Commission adopted its Third Report [COM(2001)9] on the application of Council Directive 89/552/EEC 'on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by Law, Regulation or Administrative Action in Member States concerning the pursuit of television broadcasting activities' - known less formally as the 'Television Without Frontiers' Directive. Although the current Directive will be reviewed in 2002, the Third Report focuses on the main developments between 1997 and 2000, and does not suggest any amendments to the legislation. Commenting on the Report, Viviane Reding, European Commissioner responsible for the audiovisual sector, said:
Since its introduction in October 1989, the Television Without Frontiers Directive - which forms part of the Union's audiovisual policy - has been credited with providing effective regulation of the European audiovisual sector. It aims to promote the free movement of television broadcasts within the Community, by ensuring that Member States cannot restrict reception or retransmission except under the specific conditions identified in Article 2(2). The Directive coordinates Member States' own legislation in the following areas:
Some of these issues are addressed in the Third Report, COM (2000) 9, which includes the sections on:
Amongst the statistics presented in the Report are:
Article 26 of the Television Without Frontiers Directive requires the Commission to submit a report on its application every two years (starting no later than five years after its adoption) and, if necessary, to propose appropriate amendments. The First Report [COM (1995) 86] covered the period up to the end of 1994. Its recommendation that the legislation should be revised resulted in the adoption of Directive 97/36/EEC, which entered into force on 30 June 1997. That Directive required the Commission's next report to be submitted by 31 December 2000. The Second Report, COM (97) 523 [pdf], spanned the period January 1995 to July 1997. It 'describes and analyses the salient facts in the application of the Directive during the reference period. It also attempts to offer an overall view of the progress achieved in interpreting its standards, with special attention given to the decisions of the Court of Justice.' There is another set of reports associated with the Television Without Frontiers Directive. Article 4(3) of the original Directive required the Commission to report every two years on the application of Articles 4 and 5, which state that broadcasters should, whenever practicable, devote the majority of their transmission time to European works, and 10% of their air time or programming budget to European works made by independent producers.
The original Television Without Frontiers legislation was amended in 1997 by Directive 97/36/EC, which should have been transposed into national legislative systems by the end of 1998. Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands have not yet implemented the revised Directive, and the Commission has consequently initiated legal proceedings against them. In preparation for the 2002 review, the Commission has recently started studies on:
During 2001, the Commission intends to organise a number of public hearings on the legislation. Together with the results of the studies currently underway, views gathered at the hearings will contribute to a review of the Directive, which the Commission will submit to the Council and Parliament in 2002. The Council of Europe has a number of agreements concerning television, including the 1989 European Convention on Transfrontier Television (since amended). The European Commission formally applied for membership of the Council of Europe's European Audiovisual Observatory in November 2000. The Observatory was set up in 1992 to promote the transparency of information in the audiovisual industry in Europe. It gathers and distributes information and data on economic, legal and financial matters concerning the film industry, television, video and the new media in 33 European countries and within the European Union. Further information within European Sources Online:
Further information can be seen in these external links: EU Institutions International Organisations
Miscellaneous Organisations
Further and subsequent information on the subject of this In Focus can be found by an 'Advanced Search' in European Sources Online by inserting 'television' or 'television without frontiers' in the keyword field. Eric Davies On 16 January 2001, the European Commission adopted its Third Report on the application of the 'Television Without Frontiers' Directive. |
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