The ACT has condemned a vote by the European Parliament’s IMCO Committee seeking to include copyright protected works in the scope of geo-blocking regulation.
The Brussels-based organisation that represents Europe’s commercial broadcasters said that in doing so it had let down Europe’s creative industries.
The ACT believes such a shift would put the economic sustainability of the sector at risk, alongside the ability for audiences to benefit from a diversity of content produced and distributed across multiple distribution channels.
In a statement, Grégoire Polad, ACT Director General, said: “We regret that the proponents of this radical change continue to operate on anecdotal or partial evidence, to suggest a market failure that is not verified by facts.
“We also regret political posturing which gambles with the growth of companies across Europe and the hundreds of thousands of jobs that they support. Specifically, where the changes advocated in the name of the Single Market clearly fail to demonstrate (a) a problem, and; (b) valid alternative financing systems.”
The ACT has called upon Members of the European Parliament to be guided by their Culture and Education Committee when taking the plenary vote. It says CULT has “a deep understanding of the sector and the balanced approach required to support a healthy, robust and lively cultural and creative sector.”