The EBU has called on EU policymakers to use the revision of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive to strengthen protections for Europe’s audiovisual media sector.
The organisation says the updated AVMSD should address the growing influence of big tech platforms, connected TV interfaces and AI-generated content on the visibility and sustainability of trusted media services.
Thomas Bergmann, senior policy adviser at the EBU, said the directive remains “a cornerstone of Europe’s media pluralism and cultural diversity”, but warned that new gatekeepers risk limiting access to reliable journalism and culturally relevant content.
The EBU has identified five priority areas for the revision: mandatory prominence rules for general interest media services; measures against unfair platform gatekeeping practices; reduced regulatory asymmetries between video-sharing platforms and regulated audiovisual services; protection of existing rules on major events, short news reporting and European works; and clarification that the AVMSD should take precedence over broader horizontal regulation such as the Digital Services Act.
The EBU said policymakers should balance harmonised EU rules with flexibility for member states to reflect national cultural, social and market conditions.
