BROADCASTING: AUDIOVISUAL PROFESSIONALS UNIMPRESSED WITH NEW TWF DIRECTIVE.

• Position: Television Without Frontiers

"With the arrival of new suppliers, are we not running the risk of seeing the quotas slipping, is Europe going to defend national and European creations and will creation still exist in 10 years' time?", asked Sophie Deschamps, scriptwriter and chair of the television committee of the Society of playwriters (SACD) on January 27 during a press conference.

The amendment of the 1989 TWF Directive, the second since its inception, was made necessary by the dramatic changes which have taken place in the European audiovisual sector: the arrival of telecoms operators (for example, via television via ADSL) and the emergence of so called non linear services (video on request), recalled Emmanuel Joly of the European Commission. Part of the amendment is to force newcomers (such as telecoms operators) to apply the principle of promoting European works. On the other side, it introduces more flexibility with regard to television advertising.

Pascal Rogard, Chairman of the SACD, feels that the new Directive is "minimalist". He nevertheless welcomed the cultural diversity imposed on newcomers, "despite intense efforts by telephonic operators" to avoid them. Indeed the Directive forces member states to ensure that the on demand services...