The Polish public broadcaster TVP is unlikely to survive without advertising, according to its president Juliusz Braun.
Speaking to a Senate committee and quoted in Gazeta Wyborcza, he said that the introduction of a monthly PLN10 (€2.40) ‘Audiovisual Charge’, coupled with the withdrawal of commercials, would effectively cut its revenues by two-thirds.
Braun added that TVP’s current budget amounts to PLN1.4 billion, whereas under the current proposals the charge would only bring in PLN1 billion, assuming every household paid, from which would have to be deducted at least PLN300 million for radio services, along with funding for TVP’s public service mission.
Braun pointed out that TVP is the only public broadcaster in the EU that relies mostly on ad revenue, with receiver licence fees contributing only 12% of its income.
Indeed, it is more dependent on advertising than commercial stations.
