The Polish parliament (Sejm) has approved amendments to the country’s Broadcast Law that could result in Discovery Communications being forced to exit the country.
Members of the Sejm voted 228 in favour and 216 against what is referred to as ‘Lex TVN’, with 10 abstentions. There will now be a vote in the Senate, where the amendments are likely to be rejected and passed back to the Sejm for a second vote. Ultimately, the country’s President Andrzej Duda will be left to decide whether to approve, veto or pass Lex TVN to the Constitutional Tribunal.
‘Lex TVN’ was put forward by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party and if enacted will see Discovery, whose interests in Poland include the national commercial broadcaster TVN and on demand and thematic services, including the news based channel TVN24, being forced to sell up within a matter of months. However, it has been heavily criticised in Poland, with demonstrations across the country earlier this week and PiS losing a junior coalition partner in the government it heads prior to the Sejm vote on Lex TVN. It is also being followed with some concern by the US government and could ultimately damage US-Polish relations.
‘Lex TVN’ would require all licensed distributors of radio and TV services in Poland to be based in the European Economic Area (EEA) and not be dependent on anyone based outside the EEA. This would impact TVN as although its owner is registered in the Netherlands as Polish Television Holding BV it is ultimately headquartered in the US. Although PiS has ruled out widening the requirement for licensed distributors to companies based in the OECD, which includes the US, some changes to the Lex TVN are already being discussed.
Meanwhile, following the Sejm vote the management board of TVN issued a statement saying: “The Sejm’s decision to amend the Broadcasting Act is aimed directly at TVN,and is also an unprecedented attack on freedom of speech and media independence. We will resolutely and consistently defend TVN24 and other channels of TVN Discovery Group. The result of today’s vote undermines property rights, causing concern for foreign investors in Poland. It undoubtedly also undermines the foundations of the Polish-American alliance built over the last 30 years. We appeal to the Senate and the President of the Republic of Poland to reject the draft in its present form. It depends on this whether Poland will still be perceived in the international arena as a democratic country and credible for investors”.
Prior to the vote, JB Perrette, president and CEO of Discovery International, said: “The politicisation of the licence renewal for TVN24 to operate is a real concern, so is the vote that will take place in the Polish parliament this week – not just to us as a company, but to the Polish people, to the Polish economy, and to any company investing in Poland. The rule of law and free media is a crucial part of every democracy, and we will continue to strongly defend TVN’s role as the country’s leading independent news provider. An unpredictable regulatory framework should be very concerning for all potential investors in the market. I hope that Polish regulators and politicians will eventually share this view”.
