The Commission has said that it will look into a 2001 set of
rules on what subsidies countries are allowed to give to public
sector broadcasters. It said an update was needed because new media
and digital technologies had changed the media landscape so
much.
The Commission said that it would re-examine the rules in the
light of its duty to preserve fair competition. "This implies in
particular the need for a clearly defined public service mission as
well as a limitation of state aid to what is necessary for the
fulfilment of this mission, excluding overcompensation and possible
cross-subsidies into commercial activities," said a Commission
statement.
"[The process] offers the opportunity to evaluate the extent to
which developments that have occurred since the adoption of the
2001 Broadcasting Communication require further clarification or
changes to the existing rules," said the Commission. "In particular
[it will look at] the implications for public service broadcasting
of market developments in the delivery of audiovisual content and
the emergence of new media services requires broad discussions with
Member States and stakeholders."
State aid to all industries is limited by the Commission in an
attempt to foster free market competition both within and between
nations. Countries can fund public service broadcasting, but
Commission rules are designed to stop that process skewing the
market for commercial broadcasters.
A Commission discussion paper said that one of the main changes
that new rules would have to consider would be the new Audiovisual
Media Services (AVMS) Directive. That law was passed last month,
though EU member states have until 19th December 2009 to implement
its provisions into their national laws.
The Directive extends control of the broadcasting industry into
some internet services.
"The Commission's overall objective is to design an appropriate
legal framework for the future financing of public service
broadcasting in a new media environment," the Commission paper
said. "This should take into account the importance of public
service broadcasting and the necessity for public support on the
one hand and possible adverse effects on competition on the
other."
"The rules should strike a balance between the necessity to have
sufficiently clear and precise requirements at EU level and the
freedom of Member States to design their system of public service
broadcasting according to their legal traditions," it said.
The consultation process ends in March, and the Commission said
that if it needed to issue a new set of rules, a proposed set would
be published later this year.
