European Parliament’s vote on the review of the Audiovisual Media Services (AVMS) Directive raises concerns for media pluralism and press freedom

Today’s vote of the European Parliament’s Culture Committee does not meet the expectations of the European press sector.

Publishers of newspapers and magazines in Europe are concerned that today’s vote in the European Parliament on the proposal for an updated AVMS Directive could seriously undermine media pluralism and press freedom in Europe.

First of all, the European Parliament’s compromises support a large deregulation of the audiovisual advertising market, which is probably neither what consumers want nor certainly what the objective of maintaining a vibrant and pluralistic media landscape requires.

Amongst other things, the Culture Committee voted in favour of a suggestion to make isolated ad spots as admissible as any other advertisements, including during TV prime time, whereas this provision (Article 19) was not part of the initial European Commission’s proposal. Yet, such a change would create an unprecedented situation on the advertising market, largely to the detriment of the press sector.

Similarly, ENPA and EMMA do regret that the Culture Committee did not vote for maintaining an hourly-based limitation of TV advertising (Article 23). Moving away from such a rule does not put press publishers in appropriate conditions to maintain their investments into journalistic content in the long run.

Finally, EMMA and ENPA regret that the concerns expressed in relation to quotas and the possibly broader inclusion of press websites under the scope of the Directive are not adequately addressed in the adopted compromise amendments.

 

For further information contact:

Max von Abendroth 
Executive Director, EMMA

max.abendroth@magazinemedia.eu

+32 2 536 06 04

 

Sophie Scrive 
Executive Director, ENPA

sophie.scrive@enpa.eu

+32 2 551 01 97

 

EMMA

The European Magazine Media Association, is the unique and complete representation of Europe’s magazine media, which is today enjoyed by millions of consumers on various platforms, encompassing both paper and digital formats.

www.magazinemedia.eu
ENPA

The European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA) is the largest representative body of newspaper publishers across Europe. ENPA advocates for 14 national associations across 14 European countries, and is a principal interlocutor to the EU institutions and a key driver of media policy debates in the European Union.

www.enpa.eu