Presidential consultation between the media authorities of Hungary and Luxembourg

Published: 20 May 2016

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The issue of programmes broadcasted on the Hungarian language RTL channels placed under the jurisdiction of Luxembourg was the focus of the consultations between Monika Karas, President of the NMHH, Thierry Hoscheit, President of Luxembourg’s media authority and Romain Kohn Director General held on 19 May in the Ostrom utca headquarters of the Hungarian media authority on the subject of international developments affecting the two parties.

Magyar-luxemburgi hatósági elnöki találkozó 1

The consultation between the two authorities may establish a close cooperation between the Luxembourg authority Alia (Autorité luxembourgeois indépendante de l’audiovisuel) and its Hungarian counterpart, the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (NMHH), which would enable the two authorities to take efficient action against violations of the regulations on the protection of minors and ensure that programmes targeting Hungarian audiences but subject to Luxembourg jurisdiction comply with statutory provisions.

Putting the consultations on the agenda was justified by the recent relocation of several channels belonging to the RTL Group under the former jurisdiction of Romania (Cool, Film+, Film+2, RTL II, RTL+, Sorozat+, Muzsika TV) to Luxembourg. As the average viewer rating of the relocated channels is over 12 per cent, they are counted among the major participants of the Hungarian market. At the same time, the NMHH forwarded several complaints regarding these channels to the Romanian authorities in the past. At present, Luxembourg does not have a classification system in force for the protection of minors that, as in Hungary and Romania, is intended to prevent minors from being exposed to harmful content on television. The NMHH strives to take efficient action against illegal content even after the switch in broadcasters’ jurisdiction, and it was with that in mind that it initiated a professional consultation with the Luxembourg authority.

Moreover, the parties discussed international-level plans relevant to the media industry of both authorities, with special regard to the imminent amendment of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive. The draft text of the proposed amendment will be published by the European Commission on 25 May. At the meeting, Monika Karas provided a detailed presentation to the management of the Luxembourg authority on Hungarian media regulations and the administrative activity of the NMHH.