"Landscape Switzerland shows bite"
Regional TV executives welcome the Federal Council's message on the RTVG with reservations
Regional TV bosses welcome the Federal Council's dispatch on the RTVA with reservationsBy Daniel Schifferle Before Christmas, the Federal Council adopted its dispatch on the overall revision of the Radio and Television Act (RTVA) for the attention of the Swiss parliament. As expected, the plans for TV fee splitting were not implemented. But is the promised two to three million francs per broadcaster enough? And is it acceptable if only ten to a maximum of twelve stations are to benefit?
"In our bilingual region, we take on a real bridging function with a bilingual program. We guarantee the same program for both languages every day. Bilingualism doesn't make things any cheaper, so every franc is welcome for our station. By limiting the number of stations to ten or twelve, the broadcasting regions become larger. And this makes it questionable whether the stations can still guarantee the public service to the extent desired by the Federal Council."
"The two to three million francs per broadcaster under discussion represent the absolute minimum when I compare this with the more than one billion francs in SRG fees. The performance mandate that the Federal Council is demanding from private television broadcasters in its draft law in return for this modest additional contribution will only be provided by very few, two to three million francs or not. It is therefore probably right to limit the number of fee recipients. It is important to grant a license to those broadcasters who have proven in the past that they can and want to fulfil this service mandate, because only they can guarantee a genuine, long-term public service from the individual regions."
"The RTVA is a good move from both an economic and a media policy perspective. The large national language broadcasters Tele 24, TV 3 and Sat 1/ ProSieben, which were backed by corporations and major banks, did not hold out as expected. It was the smaller local and private channels that held out. The Swiss landscape has once again shown its bite.
The reception fees that are distributed appear to be sufficient for the purpose for which they are intended: namely to help create a regional program. The number of ten to twelve television stations entitled to receive fees is also good. To make television, the region needs a certain size. Dividing Switzerland into ten to twelve television regions makes sense."
"My position has remained unchanged for years: I am in favor of a dual system, i.e. advertising for the private broadcasters and fees for the SRG. However, it is clear to me that pressure from the large publishing houses with a silent threat of a referendum will lead to fee splitting for regional television stations as well.
The Federal Council's proposal is sensible because of the built-in "safeguards against overuse". The fact that ten to twelve areas are put out to tender prevents the distribution of fees with a watering can. More fee-financed regional television stations would lead to a fee share of around CHF 100 million, which would immediately be met with the introduction of radio advertising by the SRG. The same publishing houses would then have collected perhaps two million francs for regional television on the one hand, which would then immediately be lost to private radio stations for national advertising on the other.
Private radio stations in German-speaking Switzerland have another problem with fee splitting for regional television. The latter are always associated with private radio stations and, with one exception, with regional newspapers everywhere. Fee splitting would also indirectly distort the market in favor of these private radio stations, which could offer cross-media products, for example. Private radio stations such as Radio 32, Zürisee, Central, Pilatus, Sunshine, BEO, BE 1 and Edelweiss would be at a disadvantage. The fee splitting for regional television stations must therefore not lead to a clear-cutting of private radio stations in the medium term."
"We are basically satisfied with this draft law. The draft shows that a sensible regional TV landscape is desirable in Switzerland. The expected two to three million francs per year per station may not allow for any great leaps, but it will allow for moderate development. Less would definitely only be a drop in the ocean. In Switzerland, professional television cannot be financed solely from the market at national, regional or regional level. The production costs are high, the markets small - in my opinion, the reduction to ten to twelve regional licenses also makes sense. I find it incomprehensible that the ban on advertising for SRG radio stations is not included in the draft bill. It is actually undisputed - but a dangerous loophole has been left open in the draft bill. I hope that the Federal Assembly will correct this during the detailed consultation."
"Whether two to three million francs per station will be enough depends on what performance mandate the stations have to fulfill in terms of public service in order to benefit from fee splitting. It could be enough for stations that broadcast in a homogeneous area and have their costs under control.
On the other hand, limiting the number of stations to ten or twelve is of course a nonsensical concept that ignores the political and social realities of Switzerland: The country is federalist, and so is the media landscape. There need to be a few more licensed areas. And ultimately - after the parliamentary debate - there will be a few more. But even more important is the choice of areas: Where independent media have survived until now, a broadcaster should continue to exist, closed areas must have priority."
"In our bilingual region, we take on a real bridging function with a bilingual program. We guarantee the same program for both languages every day. Bilingualism doesn't make things any cheaper, so every franc is welcome for our station. By limiting the number of stations to ten or twelve, the broadcasting regions become larger. And this makes it questionable whether the stations can still guarantee the public service to the extent desired by the Federal Council."
"The two to three million francs per broadcaster under discussion represent the absolute minimum when I compare this with the more than one billion francs in SRG fees. The performance mandate that the Federal Council is demanding from private television broadcasters in its draft law in return for this modest additional contribution will only be provided by very few, two to three million francs or not. It is therefore probably right to limit the number of fee recipients. It is important to grant a license to those broadcasters who have proven in the past that they can and want to fulfil this service mandate, because only they can guarantee a genuine, long-term public service from the individual regions."
"The RTVA is a good move from both an economic and a media policy perspective. The large national language broadcasters Tele 24, TV 3 and Sat 1/ ProSieben, which were backed by corporations and major banks, did not hold out as expected. It was the smaller local and private channels that held out. The Swiss landscape has once again shown its bite.
The reception fees that are distributed appear to be sufficient for the purpose for which they are intended: namely to help create a regional program. The number of ten to twelve television stations entitled to receive fees is also good. To make television, the region needs a certain size. Dividing Switzerland into ten to twelve television regions makes sense."
"My position has remained unchanged for years: I am in favor of a dual system, i.e. advertising for the private broadcasters and fees for the SRG. However, it is clear to me that pressure from the large publishing houses with a silent threat of a referendum will lead to fee splitting for regional television stations as well.
The Federal Council's proposal is sensible because of the built-in "safeguards against overuse". The fact that ten to twelve areas are put out to tender prevents the distribution of fees with a watering can. More fee-financed regional television stations would lead to a fee share of around CHF 100 million, which would immediately be met with the introduction of radio advertising by the SRG. The same publishing houses would then have collected perhaps two million francs for regional television on the one hand, which would then immediately be lost to private radio stations for national advertising on the other.
Private radio stations in German-speaking Switzerland have another problem with fee splitting for regional television. The latter are always associated with private radio stations and, with one exception, with regional newspapers everywhere. Fee splitting would also indirectly distort the market in favor of these private radio stations, which could offer cross-media products, for example. Private radio stations such as Radio 32, Zürisee, Central, Pilatus, Sunshine, BEO, BE 1 and Edelweiss would be at a disadvantage. The fee splitting for regional television stations must therefore not lead to a clear-cutting of private radio stations in the medium term."
"We are basically satisfied with this draft law. The draft shows that a sensible regional TV landscape is desirable in Switzerland. The expected two to three million francs per year per station may not allow for any great leaps, but it will allow for moderate development. Less would definitely only be a drop in the ocean. In Switzerland, professional television cannot be financed solely from the market at national, regional or regional level. The production costs are high, the markets small - in my opinion, the reduction to ten to twelve regional licenses also makes sense. I find it incomprehensible that the ban on advertising for SRG radio stations is not included in the draft bill. It is actually undisputed - but a dangerous loophole has been left open in the draft bill. I hope that the Federal Assembly will correct this during the detailed consultation."
"Whether two to three million francs per station will be enough depends on what performance mandate the stations have to fulfill in terms of public service in order to benefit from fee splitting. It could be enough for stations that broadcast in a homogeneous area and have their costs under control.
On the other hand, limiting the number of stations to ten or twelve is of course a nonsensical concept that ignores the political and social realities of Switzerland: The country is federalist, and so is the media landscape. There need to be a few more licensed areas. And ultimately - after the parliamentary debate - there will be a few more. But even more important is the choice of areas: Where independent media have survived until now, a broadcaster should continue to exist, closed areas must have priority."
