A new EU law extends the European Union’s broadcasting rules to online video services and includes a quota of 30 percent for European works on video-on-demand platforms, the European Parliament said.
Video-sharing platforms like Google’s YouTube and Facebook will also have to take measures against content “inciting violence, hatred, and terrorism.” Online platforms will need to create a “transparent, easy-to-use and effective mechanism to allow users to report or flag content.”
“We have been successful in negotiating that a similar level of protection now also applies to internet media services, as it does to the classical broadcast media services,” said Sabine Verheyen, the EU lawmaker who helped steer the legislation through the European Parliament.
EU member states will have the option of requiring streaming services not based in that country but targeting their audience to contribute financially to the production of European works, such as by directly investing in them or paying into national funds. On Thursday, a deal was made with the EU member states that will allow countries to force online streaming services including Netflix and Amazon’s video service to help fund European films and TV shows.
The level of contribution in each country will be proportional to the on-demand revenues in that country.
“The EU’s regulation of video sharing platforms is a step in the right direction but more needs to be done to examine online liability and protect EU citizens by bringing online platforms up to the same regulatory standard as TV,” said David Wheeldon, Group Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Sky.
“These new rules reflect digital progress and recognize that people now watch videos in different ways than before,” Andrus Ansip, the European Commission’s VP for the Digital Single Market, said in a statement. “They encourage innovative services and promote European films — but also protect children and tackle hate speech in a better way.”
“e are committed to being a voice for European entertainment, giving passionate local content creators a worldwide platform to share their vision, and offering consumers around the world unique and diverse stories they can discover and enjoy, anywhere, anytime and at the same time, no matter their place or language of origin,” Netflix’s Chief Content Officer, Ted Sarandos, said in a statement.
