Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2010 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (Audiovisual Media Services Directive) (codified version) (Text with EEA relevance)

For the purposes of this Directive, the following definitions shall apply:

1. ‘audiovisual media service’ means:

   1. a service as defined by Articles 56 and 57 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, where the principal purpose of the service or a dissociable section thereof is devoted to providing programmes, under the editorial responsibility of a media service provider, to the general public, in order to inform, entertain or educate, by means of electronic communications networks within the meaning of point (a) of Article 2 of Directive 2002/21/EC; such an audiovisual media service is either a television broadcast as defined in point (e) of this paragraph or an on-demand audiovisual media service as defined in point (g) of this paragraph;

   2. audiovisual commercial communication;

2. ‘video-sharing platform service’ means a service as defined by Articles 56 and 57 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, where the principal purpose of the service or of a dissociable section thereof or an essential functionality of the service is devoted to providing programmes, user-generated videos, or both, to the general public, for which the video-sharing platform provider does not have editorial responsibility, in order to inform, entertain or educate, by means of electronic communications networks within the meaning of point (a) of Article 2 of Directive 2002/21/EC and the organisation of which is determined by the video-sharing platform provider, including by automatic means or algorithms in particular by displaying, tagging and sequencing;

3. ‘programme’ means a set of moving images with or without sound constituting an individual item, irrespective of its length, within a schedule or a catalogue established by a media service provider, including feature-length films, video clips, sports events, situation comedies, documentaries, children's programmes and original drama;

4. ‘user-generated video’ means a set of moving images with or without sound constituting an individual item, irrespective of its length, that is created by a user and uploaded to a video-sharing platform by that user or any other user;

5. ‘editorial decision’ means a decision which is taken on a regular basis for the purpose of exercising editorial responsibility and linked to the day-to-day operation of the audiovisual media service;

6. ‘editorial responsibility’ means the exercise of effective control both over the selection of the programmes and over their organisation either in a chronological schedule, in the case of television broadcasts, or in a catalogue, in the case of on-demand audiovisual media services. Editorial responsibility does not necessarily imply any legal liability under national law for the content or the services provided;

7. ‘media service provider’ means the natural or legal person who has editorial responsibility for the choice of the audiovisual content of the audiovisual media service and determines the manner in which it is organised;

8. ‘video-sharing platform provider’ means the natural or legal person who provides a video-sharing platform service;

9. ‘television broadcasting’ or ‘television broadcast’ (i.e. a linear audiovisual media service) means an audiovisual media service provided by a media service provider for simultaneous viewing of programmes on the basis of a programme schedule;

10. ‘broadcaster’ means a media service provider of television broadcasts;

11. ‘on-demand audiovisual media service’ (i.e. a non-linear audiovisual media service) means an audiovisual media service provided by a media service provider for the viewing of programmes at the moment chosen by the user and at his individual request on the basis of a catalogue of programmes selected by the media service provider;

12. ‘audiovisual commercial communication’ means images with or without sound which are designed to promote, directly or indirectly, the goods, services or image of a natural or legal person pursuing an economic activity; such images accompany, or are included in, a programme or user-generated video in return for payment or for similar consideration or for self-promotional purposes. Forms of audiovisual commercial communication include, inter alia, television advertising, sponsorship, teleshopping and product placement;

13. ‘television advertising’ means any form of announcement broadcast whether in return for payment or for similar consideration or broadcast for self-promotional purposes by a public or private undertaking or natural person in connection with a trade, business, craft or profession in order to promote the supply of goods or services, including immovable property, rights and obligations, in return for payment;

14. ‘surreptitious audiovisual commercial communication’ means the representation in words or pictures of goods, services, the name, the trade mark or the activities of a producer of goods or a provider of services in programmes when such representation is intended by the media service provider to serve as advertising and might mislead the public as to its nature. Such representation shall, in particular, be considered as intentional if it is done in return for payment or for similar consideration;

15. ‘sponsorship’ means any contribution made by public or private undertakings or natural persons not engaged in providing audiovisual media services or video-sharing platform services or in producing audiovisual works to the financing of audiovisual media services, video-sharing platform services, user-generated videos or programmes with a view to promoting their name, trade mark, image, activities or products;

16. ‘teleshopping’ means direct offers broadcast to the public with a view to the supply of goods or services, including immovable property, rights and obligations, in return for payment;

17. ‘product placement’ means any form of audiovisual commercial communication consisting of the inclusion of, or reference to, a product, a service or the trade mark thereof so that it is featured within a programme or a user-generated video in return for payment or for similar consideration;

18. ‘European works’ means the following:

    1. works originating in Member States;

    2. works originating in European third States party to the European Convention on Transfrontier Television of the Council of Europe and fulfilling the conditions of paragraph 3;

    3. works co-produced within the framework of agreements related to the audiovisual sector concluded between the Union and third countries and fulfilling the conditions defined in each of those agreements.

The application of the provisions of points (n)(ii) and (iii) of paragraph 1 shall be conditional on works originating in Member States not being the subject of discriminatory measures in the third country concerned.

The works referred to in points (n)(i) and (ii) of paragraph 1 are works mainly made with authors and workers residing in one or more of the States referred to in those provisions provided that they comply with one of the following three conditions:

1. they are made by one or more producers established in one or more of those States;

2. the production of the works is supervised and actually controlled by one or more producers established in one or more of those States;

3. the contribution of co-producers of those States to the total co-production costs is preponderant and the co-production is not controlled by one or more producers established outside those States.

Works that are not European works within the meaning of point (n) of paragraph 1 but that are produced within the framework of bilateral co-production agreements concluded between Member States and third countries shall be deemed to be European works provided that the co-producers from the Union supply a majority share of the total cost of production and that the production is not controlled by one or more producers established outside the territory of the Member States.

Each Member State shall ensure that all audiovisual media services transmitted by media service providers under its jurisdiction comply with the rules of the system of law applicable to audiovisual media services intended for the public in that Member State.

For the purposes of this Directive, the media service providers under the jurisdiction of a Member State are any of the following:

1. those established in that Member State in accordance with paragraph 3;

2. those to whom paragraph 4 applies.

For the purposes of this Directive, a media service provider shall be deemed to be established in a Member State in the following cases:

1. the media service provider has its head office in that Member State and the editorial decisions about the audiovisual media service are taken in that Member State;

2. if a media service provider has its head office in one Member State but editorial decisions on the audiovisual media service are taken in another Member State, the media service provider shall be deemed to be established in the Member State where a significant part of the workforce involved in the pursuit of the programme-related audiovisual media service activity operates. If a significant part of the workforce involved in the pursuit of the programme-related audiovisual media service activity operates in each of those Member States, the media service provider shall be deemed to be established in the Member State where it has its head office. If a significant part of the workforce involved in the pursuit of the programme-related audiovisual media service activity operates in neither of those Member States, the media service provider shall be deemed to be established in the Member State where it first began its activity in accordance with the law of that Member State, provided that it maintains a stable and effective link with the economy of that Member State;

3. if a media service provider has its head office in a Member State but decisions on the audiovisual media service are taken in a third country, or vice versa, it shall be deemed to be established in the Member State concerned, provided that a significant part of the workforce involved in the pursuit of the audiovisual media service activity operates in that Member State.

Media service providers to whom the provisions of paragraph 3 are not applicable shall be deemed to be under the jurisdiction of a Member State in the following cases:

1. they use a satellite up-link situated in that Member State;

2. although they do not use a satellite up-link situated in that Member State, they use satellite capacity appertaining to that Member State.

If the question as to which Member State has jurisdiction cannot be determined in accordance with paragraphs 3 and 4, the competent Member State shall be that in which the media service provider is established within the meaning of Articles 49 to 55 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Member States shall ensure that media service providers inform the competent national regulatory authorities or bodies about any changes that may affect the determination of jurisdiction in accordance with paragraphs 2, 3 and 4.

Member States shall establish and maintain an up-to-date list of the media service providers under their jurisdiction and indicate on which of the criteria set out in paragraphs 2 to 5 their jurisdiction is based. Member States shall communicate that list, including any updates thereto, to the Commission.

The Commission shall ensure that such lists are made available in a centralised database. In the event of inconsistencies between the lists, the Commission shall contact the Member States concerned in order to find a solution. The Commission shall ensure that the national regulatory authorities or bodies have access to that database. The Commission shall make information in the database publicly available.

Where, in applying Article 3 or 4, the Member States concerned do not agree on which Member State has jurisdiction, they shall bring the matter to the Commission's attention without undue delay. The Commission may request the European Regulators Group for Audiovisual Media Services (ERGA) to provide an opinion on the matter in accordance with point (d) of Article 30b(3). ERGA shall provide such an opinion within 15 working days from the submission of the Commission's request. The Commission shall keep the Contact Committee established by Article 29 duly informed.

When the Commission adopts a decision pursuant to Article 3(2) or (3), or Article 4(5), it shall also decide which Member State has jurisdiction.

This Directive does not apply to audiovisual media services intended exclusively for reception in third countries and which are not received with standard consumer equipment directly or indirectly by the public in one or more Member States.

Member States shall ensure freedom of reception and shall not restrict retransmissions on their territory of audiovisual media services from other Member States for reasons which fall within the fields coordinated by this Directive.

A Member State may provisionally derogate from paragraph 1 of this Article where an audiovisual media service provided by a media service provider under the jurisdiction of another Member State manifestly, seriously and gravely infringes point (a) of Article 6(1) or Article 6a(1) or prejudices or presents a serious and grave risk of prejudice to public health.

The derogation referred to in the first subparagraph shall be subject to the following conditions:

1. during the previous 12 months, the media service provider has on at least two prior occasions already performed one or more instances of conduct described in the first subparagraph;

2. the Member State concerned has notified the media service provider, the Member State having jurisdiction over that provider and the Commission in writing of the alleged infringements and of the proportionate measures it intends to take should any such infringement occur again;

3. the Member State concerned has respected the right of defence of the media service provider and, in particular, has given that provider the opportunity to express its views on the alleged infringements; and

4. consultations with the Member State having jurisdiction over the media service provider and the Commission have not resulted in an amicable settlement within one month of the Commission's receipt of the notification referred to in point (b).

Within three months of the receipt of the notification of the measures taken by the Member State concerned and after having requested ERGA to provide an opinion in accordance with point (d) of Article 30b(3), the Commission shall take a decision on whether those measures are compatible with Union law. The Commission shall keep the Contact Committee duly informed. Where the Commission decides that those measures are not compatible with Union law, it shall require the Member State concerned to put an end to the measures in question as a matter of urgency.

A Member State may provisionally derogate from paragraph 1 of this Article where an audiovisual media service provided by a media service provider under the jurisdiction of another Member State manifestly, seriously and gravely infringes point (b) of Article 6(1) or prejudices or presents a serious and grave risk of prejudice to public security, including the safeguarding of national security and defence.

The derogation referred to in the first subparagraph shall be subject to the following conditions:

1. during the previous 12 months the conduct referred to in the first subparagraph occurred at least on one prior occasion;

   and

2. the Member State concerned has notified the media service provider, the Member State having jurisdiction over that provider and the Commission in writing of the alleged infringement and of the proportionate measures it intends to take should any such infringement occur again.

The Member State concerned shall respect the rights of defence of the media service provider concerned and, in particular, give that provider the opportunity to express its views on the alleged infringements.

Within three months of the receipt of the notification of the measures taken by the Member State concerned and after having requested ERGA to provide an opinion in accordance with point (d) of Article 30b(3), the Commission shall take a decision on whether those measures are compatible with Union law. The Commission shall keep the Contact Committee duly informed. Where the Commission decides that those measures are not compatible with Union law, it shall require the Member State concerned to put an end to the measures in question as a matter of urgency.

Paragraphs 2 and 3 shall be without prejudice to the application of any procedure, remedy or sanction to the infringements in question in the Member State which has jurisdiction over the media service provider concerned.

Member States may, in urgent cases, no later than one month after the alleged infringement, derogate from the conditions laid down in points (a) and (b) of paragraph 3. Where this is the case, the measures taken shall be notified in the shortest possible time to the Commission and to the Member State under whose jurisdiction the media service provider falls, indicating the reasons for which the Member State considers that there is urgency. The Commission shall examine the compatibility of the notified measures with Union law in the shortest possible time. Where it comes to the conclusion that the measures are incompatible with Union law, the Commission shall require the Member State in question to urgently put an end to those measures.

If the Commission lacks information necessary to take a decision pursuant to paragraph 2 or 3, it shall, within one month of the receipt of the notification, request from the Member State concerned all information necessary to reach that decision. The time limit within which the Commission is to take the decision shall be suspended until that Member State has provided such necessary information. In any case, the suspension of the time limit shall not last longer than one month.

Member States and the Commission shall regularly exchange experiences and best practices regarding the procedure set out in this Article in the framework of the Contact Committee and ERGA.