Research group at imec & Vrije Universiteit Brussel

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Investment obligations for VOD providers to contribute to the production of European works: A 2022 update

Investment obligations for VOD providers to contribute to the production of European works: A 2022 update

This study provides a fresh look of the existing regulatory approaches that include requirements for VOD providers to invest in local content. The objective is to present insights on a range of policy approaches from EU Member States and other jurisdictions and their underpinning characteristics such as calculation methods, rates, thresholds for exemptions and enforcement procedures. To that end, we also highlight more recent legislative interventions coming up from the transposition of the EU’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD).

The research presented was conducted during a period of rapid change in the audiovisual industries. Welcoming the analysis of prevailing challenges presented in recent reports, including the Film i Väst report ‘Public Funders at a Crossroads’ and the 2022 Nostradamus Report – ‘Imagining a Sustainable Industry’, our purpose is to contribute to the broader discussion by providing an in-depth look into the legal complexity of investment obligations for VOD providers.

This is the third edition of the Study on Investment Obligations for VOD providers, following the editions published in 2018 and 2021. As with the previous editions, the outcomes of this study are intended to provide valuable insights to policymakers and industries in Europe and beyond. Lessons from other jurisdictions that require VOD providers to contribute to local content might be helpful to those in a search of well-designed policy. Our ambition is also to provide a detailed view on Member States’ regulatory requirements in order to help VOD providers comply with the investment obligations.

Alongside the comprehensive overview of legislative frameworks, in the current edition of the study we include perspectives on investment obligations collected from key European stakeholders. We believe that stakeholders’ views on opportunities and challenges brought by investment obligations provide new perspectives to policymakers at national and EU level.

 

Download the report

Kostovska-et-al-2022-Investment-Obligations-VOD-Providers-Study-1

 

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