One of the cornerstones of democracy is the existence of a public media service; therefore, most countries have their own public service media (e.g. NHK in Japan, ZDF in Germany, ORF in Austria, and BBC in England). Operating the public service media in Hungary, Duna Médiaszolgáltató Nonprofit Zrt. has a television offering of M1, M2/Petőfi TV, Duna TV, M4 Sport, Duna World, and M3, a retro channel available in the offering of cable service providers. (The selection of public service radio channels include Kossuth, Petőfi, Bartók and Dankó Rádió, Nemzetiségi Rádió, Parlament Rádió and Duna World Rádió.) It is the Media Council’s responsibility to decide, following consultation with the Media Service Support and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), on the number of public media services offered and the media service provision options (frequencies) used by them.

Similarly, the Authority ensures the smooth functioning of the Public Service Board, i.e. the body exercising social supervision over public service media providers. Consisting of 14 members, the Public Service Board monitors the enforcement of public service orientation continuously, and controls the public service media provider’s compliance with the Media Act and the Public Service Code. Similarly, the support policy, business plan and other financial commitments of the Media Service Support and Asset Management Fund are approved by the Media Council.