Hongaars voorzitterschap pleit voor hervorming audiovisuele markt (en)

We need to discover and introduce new business models for the audio-visual industry, but authors and consumers must not be confronted, stressed Zsolt Nyitrai, Minister of State for Info-communication of the Ministry of National Development, in his keynote speech during the two-day conference, on the future of the European audio-visual industry, in Budapest on 19 April.

At the high-level conference, professionals of the industry and experts discussed the competitiveness of the audio-visual industry, its business and social aspects and issues of intellectual property rights. Representatives of the European Commission were also present.

New stars, new demands

Minister of State Zsolt Nyitrai highlighted in his opening speech, that in a world where 350 thousand smart phones are connected to the net daily and the “movie is in your pocket”, it is essential to develop a new business model for the market of audio-visual contents.

Mr Nyitrai explained that one of the aims of the conference was to explain the problems of the industry to decision-makers. The Mr Nyitrai pointed out, “You must pay for contents, but authors and consumers should not be confronted.” Mr Nyitrai added, that despite their apparent differences, the interests of the two parties are actually the same: to make the product reach as many consumers as possible. Regarding the intellectual property rights of authors, Mr Nyitrai talked about the need to develop a regulation based on the changing field of content consumption and respecting the special rights of authors, too.

A new movie of old times

Mr Nyitrai mentioned that our cultural heritage must be passed on to future generations: old music and films must be digitised, as “These are organically related to our culture and heritage.” Mr Nyitrai added that we need new methods of distribution in Europe. The Minister of State emphasised that the Hungarian Presidency is committed to accomplishing these objectives, and he was hopeful that the conference in Budapest, “Will be ground-breaking in finding prosperous solutions for the audio-visual industry.”

Digitisation and convergence

Deputy Director-General of the European Commission’s Directorate General for Information Society and Media, Antti Ilmari Peltomäki, talked about the wide range of audio-visual supply: “In just a few years, the number of TV channels in the European Union has increased from 274 to 414.” Today television and the Internet are available 24 hours a day as well as community sites. According to Mr Peltomäki, the two keywords of the audio-visual world are digitisation and convergence, since “You can access virtually anything, at any time, in any place, and by any device.” Based on the initiatives of the Commission, the deputy director-general highlighted the flagship initiative called digital agenda, which is aimed at seeking the best possible ways in utilising the opportunities of information and communication technology in the European Union, for job creation, sustainability and social integration. The deputy director-general delivered a short presentation on the Audio-visual media services directive and EU regulation of the media and the protection of minors.