Message to MEPs ahead of Dec 12, 2017 plenary vote on Broadcasting Regulation JURI mandate

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Ahead of the plenary vote scheduled on Dec 12 2017, we would like to urge you to support the JURI mandate on the Broadcasting “SatCab” Regulation.

The authors, performers and creative workers we represent consider that extending the country of origin principle in article 2 of the EC Regulation proposal beyond the limits set by the recently adopted JURI report would undermine the sustainability of the European audiovisual sector. This would negatively affect creation, jobs, employment conditions and ultimately the livelihoods of all those who rely on a vibrant industry to make a living.

The dissemination of cultural goods in Europe, including feature films, TV series or programmes, has profoundly improved and increased in recent years. An almost limitless, portable and affordable offer is now available to consumers and the industry has managed to adapt greatly to meet the soaring demand for mobile digital content.

If consumers today have access to such a wide variety of audiovisual works in the digital single market, it’s because the industry could continue to maximise investment by licensing works on a territorial and exclusive basis. Establishing pan-European licensing of films, TV series and programmes as the de facto distribution model in the digital environment will shatter all of this.

The principle that everything must be available to everyone and everywhere, appealing as it may be, does not properly measure the disastrous consequences that this would entail in terms of jobs, cultural diversity and ultimately also consumer choice. Depleting resources to satisfy demand is not a sustainable consumption model, as humanity is coming to learn.

Territorial and exclusive licensing is the one thing that enables a vibrant and diverse audiovisual industry in Europe to endure. It allows for films, TV series and programmes to be brought to linguistically and culturally sensitive European audiences. True enough, not everything may yet be available, everywhere and to everyone at any given time. But this is the (minimal) price to pay to make sure the European audiovisual industry can stay afloat and continue to offer quality jobs to our members.

We therefore support the limited approach taken by the JURI committee to the extension of the country of origin principle, so it only applies to “news and current affairs”.

In its mission as co-legislator, the European Parliament reflects the diversity of European citizens themselves.

We urge you to ensure the sustainability of the European audiovisual sector’s cultural and linguistic diversity in the digital era, by approving the mandate adopted on November 21 by a large majority of the Legal Affairs committee, consistent with the opinions of most associated committees (notably CULT, ITRE and IMCO).

Notes to Editors

FERA – Federation of European Film Directors (Transparency register ID 29280842236-21), Pauline Durand-Vialle, CEO –

pdv@filmdirectors.eu

FIA – International Federation of Actors (Transparency register ID 24070646198-51), Dominick Luquer, Secretary General –

DLuquer@fia-actors.com

FSE – Federation of Screenwriters in Europe (Transparency register ID 642670217507-74), David Kavanagh, Executive

Officer – david.kavanagh@script.ie

UNI-MEI – Uni Global Union Media Entertainment and Arts (Transparency register ID 82864476764-79), Johannes

Studinger, Head – Johannes.Studinger@uniglobalunion.org

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