Radio and TV levy for all: Council of States says yes
In the future, everyone will be required to pay radio and TV fees, regardless of whether they own a radio or a television. Following the National Council, the Council of States' preliminary review committee has also approved an amendment to the Radio and Television Act.
With the new system, the Federal Council wants to take account of the fact that radio and TV broadcasts can now be consumed via the internet on computers, tablets or smartphones. The Council of States' Committee for Transport and Telecommunications (KVF) approved the bill in the overall vote by 10 votes to 1 with 1 abstention, as reported by the parliamentary services on Tuesday. The majority of the individual provisions were in line with the Federal Council's draft.
Training of employees
However, the KVF has made some changes. For example, it has requested that the surplus from fee splitting be used for the training and further education of employees and to promote new broadcasting technologies and digital television production processes. The Commission has also spoken out in favor of an additional provision that would allow licenses to be extended without a public tender. This would take into account the previous fulfillment of the performance mandate.
No fixed allocation
In addition, the committee would like to remove from the law the fixed distribution of the fee shares (36% radio and 64% television) introduced by the National Council. It is of the opinion that a fixed allocation at legislative level would prove to be a hindrance in the dynamic media landscape. The committee narrowly rejected a motion calling for a range of 4% to 6% of the total revenue from the radio and television levy for private broadcasters. The majority supported the decision of the National Council, which set the share at 4 to 5 percent.
No opting out
The controversial opting-out for households was already discussed by the Council of States committee at its last meeting. The question is whether households without reception facilities can be exempted from the levy. The National Council would like to allow a temporary opting-out: Households that do not have radio and television reception should be able to be exempted from the levy for five years after the introduction of the new system. However, the Council of States committee rejects this.
SRG under the microscope
The committee has also submitted a postulate in connection with the deliberations on the Radio and TV Act. If the Council of States agrees, the Federal Council must review the SRG's public service performance and present it in a report. In doing so, it should take into account the position and function of private broadcasters. (SDA)
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