Broadcasters attack new EU content rules

The European Union's proposed new rules on audio-visual content would allow one member country to block broadcasts from another and would weaken the single market, an alliance of media companies said on Tuesday.
The European Parliament is due to hold a first-reading vote on the "television without frontiers" rules on December 13. It has joint say with member states.
Nearly 60 media firms and industry associations say the latest versions from a parliamentary committee and member states would allow countries to block any broadcasts on the grounds of "general public interest".
"This derogation gives member states carte blanche to summon up 'general interest' as an excuse to block any content from other countries," said Angela Mills-Wade, executive director of the European Publishers Council. The alliance includes Bertelsmann Belgacom RTL Group ProSiebenSat.1 BSkyB and many industry associations.
The alliance says the changes would end the single market in broadcasting by weakening the basic "country of origin" tenet, whereby a broadcaster is regulated only by the watchdog in the country where it is based even though it may be beaming programmes to another member state.
"Without this principle of mutual recognition based on home country control, media service providers will be subject to content control from outside their own jurisdiction," Mills-Wade said.
Some 13 member states lobbied to include the general-interest provision, often for different reasons, but parliament is likely to adopt wording next week that would narrowly restrict the interpretation of when states could use that provision.
Ruth Hieronymi, the German centre-right lawmaker steering the changes through the EU assembly, has proposed an amendment that is backed by liberals, making it almost certain to be adopted.
"What I propose for plenary is stricter on the country of origin principle, with exceptions only in cases of abuse or circumvention," Hieronymi said. For example, it would stop a company from moving to a country with a lighter regime simply to avoid heavier regulation back home where its main market is, she said.