Skip to main content

Library of U.S. Congress - Global Legal Monitor on Ukraine: New Law on TV Ownership

By CM -

(Oct. 7, 2015) On September 3, 2015, the Verkhovna Rada (legislature) of Ukraine passed a Law that introduces detailed definitions of ownership and interest in television and other broadcast companies, provides for new rules on television station ownership, and establishes new financial disclosure requirements for owners. (Law No. 674-VIII on Amending the Legislative Acts of Ukraine Concerning Transparency of Mass Media Ownership and Implementation of State Policy in the Field of Television and Radio Broadcasting, Verkhovna Rada website (Sept. 3, 2015) (in Ukrainian).) The Law was introduced by the faction in the parliament that supports the President. (Legislative Information on the Draft Law on Amending the Legislative Acts of Ukraine Concerning Transparency of Mass Media Ownership and Implementation of State Policy in the Field of Television and Radio Broadcasting, Verkhovna Rada website (June 16, 2015) (in Ukrainian).)

 Prohibitions on Ownership

 The new Law revises article 12 of the current Law of Ukraine on Television and Radio Broadcasting of 1994, newly establishing that national and local government authorities, individuals and legal entities registered in the offshore zones, political parties, religious organizations, professional unions, and persons who were convicted by courts and are still serving their sentences cannot be owners of a Ukrainian television or radio company. Additionally, the new Law denies “physical or legal persons who are residents of a country recognized by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine as a state-aggressor or state-occupier” the right to own a television or radio organization or program in Ukraine. (Law No. 674-VIII, art I.2(3); Law of Ukraine on Television and Radio Broadcasting of 1994, VIDMOSTI VERKHOVNOI RADY UKRAINY [official gazette] 1994, No. 10, Item 43 (in Ukrainian).)

 The phrase “country recognized by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine as a state-aggressor or state-occupier” is considered a euphemism referring to the Russian Federation, which annexed Ukrainian territory in the Crimea in 2014 and supports a secessionist movement in the eastern part of Ukraine. (Ukraine: New Amended Law on TV Ownership Aimed at Oligarchs, Russia, MEDIA NOTE (Sept. 24, 2015) Open Source Center online subscription database, Document No. CEL2015092468272013.) Reportedly, there are no television or radio companies in Ukraine that are owned by Russian entities or individuals today. (Id.) Earlier, Ukraine had passed a law that banned television programs and movies that depict Russian military and law enforcement figures. (Peter Roudik, Ukraine: Movies About Russian Police and Military Banned, GLOBAL LEGAL MONITOR (Apr. 6, 2015).)

 New Definition of TV, Radio Ownership

 The Law provides a new definition of television and radio ownership, which includes all owners and participants in TV or radio organizations or providers of program services and all physical persons and owners of participating legal bodies at all levels of the chain of ownership and final beneficiary owners who have the possibility of exercising decisive influence on the management or business activity of the organization directly or through other persons. (Law No. 674-VIII, art I.2(1), translated in Ukraine: New Amended Law on TV Ownership Aimed at Oligarchs, Russia, supra.)

Transparency Provisions

 Information on the structure of ownership and on those individuals who own 10% or more of a television or radio broadcasting company will be published on the company’s website and sent to the National Council for Questions of Television and Radio Broadcasting (the national regulator). The new Law gives the Council the right to impose fines for incorrect or insufficient information on ownership. (Law No. 674-VIII, arts. I.1(3) & (4).)

 It is expected that the implementation of the new Law will ensure wider transparency of ownership of broadcasting companies; however, Ukrainian commentators call the Law weak because it does not address the financing of individual television channels and programs. Another weakness of the Law, they suggest, is found in the fact that while it prohibits transfer of funds from offshore zones, it does not exclude funding from financial sources located in Cyprus, even though “ownership of most Ukrainian TV channels is exercised through Cyprus.” (Ukraine: New Amended Law on TV Ownership Aimed at Oligarchs, Russia, supra). Some commentators also expressed doubt that the Law will be amended to include Cyprus in the future, because of the strong lobbying efforts of television business owners. (Id.)

 --

 This version of the Global Legal Monitor is currently in beta testing. Please view the Current Global Legal Monitor.


MEIST GELESEN/POPULAR READS

CJEU on Spiegel Online: The use of a protected work for the purposes of reporting current events does not, in principle, require a prior request for authorisation

By CM -
Source: Judgment of the Court of Justice in Case C-516/17 Spiegel Online de en fr Freedom of establishment The use of a protected work for the purposes of reporting current events does not, in principle, require a prior request for authorisation Court of Justice of the European Union PRESS RELEASE No 101/19 Luxembourg, 29 July 2019 Judgment in Case C-516/17 Spiegel Online v Volker Beck The use of a protected work for the purposes of reporting current events does not, in principle, require a prior request for authorisation Furthermore, a work may be quoted by means of a hyperlink, provided that that quoted work, in its specific form, was previously made available to the public with the copyright holder’s authorisation or in accordance with a non-contractual licence or statutory authorisation Volker Beck, a former member of the Bundestag (Federal Parliament, Germany) is the author of a manuscript on criminal policy relating to sexual offences committed against minors, which was publish
Read more

EU Commission clears acquisition of Skoobe by Klio, Holtzbrinck, Verlagsgruppe Random House and Arvato CRM Solutions

By CM -
The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint control of the whole of Skoobe GmbH by Klio GmbH, Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH & Co. KG ("Holtzbrinck"), Verlagsgruppe Random House GmbH ("Random House") and Arvato CRM Solutions GmbH ("Arvato"), all of Germany. Skoobe offers the temporary rental of e-books over its online platform www.skoobe.de and via its own application. Klio is active as a book retailer. Holtzbrinck is an international media company that is active in trade-book publishing, education and science, newspapers and magazines as well as electronic media and services. Random House is a publishing house of Bertelsmann SE & Co KGaA ("Bertelsmann") active in the area of fictional and non-fictional books, books for children and adolescents, audio and e-books. Arvato is an international service company of Bertelsmann offering various technical services. Bertelsmann is an international med
Read more

EU auditors scrutinize EU Commission's annual 24.5m € support to NBC affiliate Euronews

By CM -
Source: ECA -  eca.europa.eu EU support helps Euronews to broaden its coverage of European affairs, but funding needs to be better monitored, say EU Auditors. The EU’s support of an average of €24.5 million a year has helped Euronews to develop a unique business model and broadcast programmes on EU affairs in a number of languages, according to a new rapid case review by the European Court of Auditors. However, most citizens in the EU are unable to access it, as the channel is not a public service broadcaster in any Member State. Moreover, the auditors identified shortcomings in the way the European Commission monitors the performance of Euronews against agreed objectives and commitments made. Euronews was created in 1993 by ten European public broadcasters to reinforce European identity and integration, and the EU has provided it with financial support since then. In recent years, it has changed its ownership structure by acquiring private investors. The auditors analysed the
Read more

EU Commission presents a directory of European films to facilitate on-line access

By CM -
Link - Source: EU Commission Other available languages: FR DE DA ES NL IT SV PT FI EL CS ET HU LT LV MT PL SK SL BG RO HR Brussels, 18 October 2018 On the occasion of the Marché international du film classique [International Classic Film Market] in Lyon, Mariya Gabriel, the Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, will today present the prototype of a directory of European films, a key action of the Digital4Culture strategy which is also part of the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018. Launched with the assistance of the European Audiovisual Observatory, the new directory will help professionals, the public authorities and citizens to find information about European films and their availability on-line in video-on-demand (VOD) services throughout the European Union. Commissioner Gabriel said: "It is up to us to ensure that European works enjoy the audience that they deserve. Digital transformation has the potential to reinforce the positive impact of
Read more

EU-Mitgliedstaaten einigen sich auf niedrigere Mehrwertsteuer für E-Books

By CM -
Link 02/10/2018 Quelle: Vertretung der EU in Berlin Die Finanzminister der EU-Mitgliedstaaten haben heute (Dienstag) einen Durchbruch bei der Mehrwertsteuer erzielt. Unter anderem wurden die Mehrwertsteuersätze für elektronische Veröffentlichungen wie etwa E-Books, die derzeit in den meisten Mitgliedstaaten zum Normalsatz besteuert werden, an die günstigere Regelung für gedruckte Veröffentlichungen angepasst. Darüber hinaus einigte man sich auf neue Vorschriften zum Informationsaustausch und auf eine engere Zusammenarbeit zwischen nationalen Steuerbehörden und Strafverfolgungsbehörden. Betrug und Steuerhinterziehung in diesem Sektor dürften somit künftig schwieriger werden. „Glaubt man den jüngsten Zahlen, so gehen den Mitgliedstaaten jährlich immer noch rund 150 Mrd. Euro an MwSt. verloren. Die heutigen Vereinbarungen sind ein wichtiger Schritt zur Lösung dieses Problems“, erklärte EU-Wirtschafts- und Finanzkommissar Pierre Moscovici. Nach den geltenden Mehrwertsteuervorschriften
Read more