Easter surprise from DETEC
Television A second consultation by DETEC provides for a new local TV without a performance mandate and fee splitting for the Zurich region.
Television A second consultation by DETEC envisages a new local TV without a service mandate and fee splitting for the Zurich region.To the great astonishment of the private TV scene, the department submitted three new TV coverage areas for north-eastern Switzerland to an additional consultation on April 10. The first proposed area is "Zurich", which is identical to the current Tele Züri area, but will not have a service mandate in future and therefore no fee share. The second area "Eastern Switzerland" (with a performance mandate) is almost identical to the current broadcasting area of Tele Ostschweiz. The third area, "Nordostschweiz", is similar to the broadcasting area of Tele Top, but without the city of St. Gallen, but with the Zurich districts of Uster and Bülach. The performance mandate for this area stipulates program windows for the cantons of Schaffhausen and Thurgau.DETEC's original proposal envisaged only two broadcasting areas with a performance mandate. The former "Eastern Switzerland" area also included the whole of Thurgau and Winterthur. The "Zurich" area included the cantons of Schaffhausen and Glarus, for each of which a program window was prescribed.
As DETEC is now leaving the "Zurich" area at its current size after all due to the reactions received, "fee support for the canton's supply is no longer necessary", writes Federal Councillor Moritz Leuenberger.
If the new DETEC proposal goes ahead, the Tamedia station Tele Züri now has its broadcasting license safe and sound. More precisely: it can continue to broadcast in its current area without a license - without fee-supported competition with an identical coverage area. Switzerland's largest private TV station will even be given carte blanche, as it can expand its broadcasting area at will without a performance mandate, provided the cable network operators cooperate.
Andreas Meili, Head of Electronic Media at Tamedia, is astonished by DETEC's "180-degree U-turn". "This approach shows a certain lack of concept", he criticizes. TV without territorial restrictions and a performance mandate could certainly be interesting, he believes, especially as Tamedia is not primarily interested in fee shares. However, Meili also sees a "distortion of competition" if a large part of the Tele-Züri broadcasting area can also be covered by the fee-financed broadcaster "Nordostschweiz".
Günter Heuberger, head of Tele Top, was "completely surprised" by DETEC. But he is pleased because the new proposal reflects the influence of the canton of Schaffhausen and the towns of Uster, Kloten, Frauenfeld, Winterthur and Wil. They had largely supported his concept in their statements.
Hanspeter Klauser, CEO of St. Galler Tagblatt AG, is also satisfied. The new "Eastern Switzerland" area is "highly sensible", he says, as it is practically congruent with the current Tele Ostschweiz distribution area. This is more in line with his wishes - even without the canton of Thurgau.
Norbert Neininger, head of Schaffhausen Television (SHTV), takes a different view: "Our position remains unchanged: Schaffhausen wants its own TV license," he says. However, the fact that his region has now been moved away from Zurich to the "Nordostschweiz" region shows "that DETEC is moving". Neininger also notes that despite the new proposal, the idea of a station for the cantons of Schaffhausen, Zurich and Glarus is not off the table. The project with program windows was outlined in January by ZüriPlus, SHTV, RingierTV and Goldbach Media - analogous to the original DETEC area "Zurich" and in competition with Tele Züri.
Markus Knöpfli
As DETEC is now leaving the "Zurich" area at its current size after all due to the reactions received, "fee support for the canton's supply is no longer necessary", writes Federal Councillor Moritz Leuenberger.
If the new DETEC proposal goes ahead, the Tamedia station Tele Züri now has its broadcasting license safe and sound. More precisely: it can continue to broadcast in its current area without a license - without fee-supported competition with an identical coverage area. Switzerland's largest private TV station will even be given carte blanche, as it can expand its broadcasting area at will without a performance mandate, provided the cable network operators cooperate.
Andreas Meili, Head of Electronic Media at Tamedia, is astonished by DETEC's "180-degree U-turn". "This approach shows a certain lack of concept", he criticizes. TV without territorial restrictions and a performance mandate could certainly be interesting, he believes, especially as Tamedia is not primarily interested in fee shares. However, Meili also sees a "distortion of competition" if a large part of the Tele-Züri broadcasting area can also be covered by the fee-financed broadcaster "Nordostschweiz".
Günter Heuberger, head of Tele Top, was "completely surprised" by DETEC. But he is pleased because the new proposal reflects the influence of the canton of Schaffhausen and the towns of Uster, Kloten, Frauenfeld, Winterthur and Wil. They had largely supported his concept in their statements.
Hanspeter Klauser, CEO of St. Galler Tagblatt AG, is also satisfied. The new "Eastern Switzerland" area is "highly sensible", he says, as it is practically congruent with the current Tele Ostschweiz distribution area. This is more in line with his wishes - even without the canton of Thurgau.
Norbert Neininger, head of Schaffhausen Television (SHTV), takes a different view: "Our position remains unchanged: Schaffhausen wants its own TV license," he says. However, the fact that his region has now been moved away from Zurich to the "Nordostschweiz" region shows "that DETEC is moving". Neininger also notes that despite the new proposal, the idea of a station for the cantons of Schaffhausen, Zurich and Glarus is not off the table. The project with program windows was outlined in January by ZüriPlus, SHTV, RingierTV and Goldbach Media - analogous to the original DETEC area "Zurich" and in competition with Tele Züri.
Markus Knöpfli
