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In its 2017 conciliation report, Austria’s Rundfunk und Telekom Regulierungs-GmbH (Regulatory Authority for Broadcasting and Telecommunications - RTR GmbH), which provides operational support for the Austrian broadcasting and audiovisual media regulator Kommunikationsbehörde Austria (KommAustria), founded in 2001, recorded a steady fall in the number of cases submitted to it in the telecommunications and media fields. According to the report, users only submitted 1 893 cases for conciliation in these two fields last year. This represents a 5% drop compared with the previous year and is the lowest...

The Austrian Rundfunk und Telekom Regulierungsbehörde (Regulatory Authority for Broadcasting and Telecommunications - RTR) has concluded the last of three consultations on the first 5G frequency auction and is therefore almost ready to auction the two 5G pioneer bands in the 3.4-3.8 GHz spectrum range. Since the terms and conditions of the auction had already been largely decided following the first two consultations, the RTR, acting on behalf of the awarding authority, Telekom-Control-Kommission (TKK), used the third consultation to instigate dialogue between all stakeholders and to put the final...

In two decisions published at the start of May, the Austrian regulator KommAustria imposed new limits on public service broadcaster ORF’s Internet-based activities. KommAustria rejected requests from the broadcaster to set up its own channel on the online video platform YouTube (KOA 11.278/18-001) and refused to grant public service status to the commercial online video library “Flimmit”, which it owns through subsidiary companies, so that it could be partially funded through the licence fee (KOA 11.280/18-004). ORF had hoped that by setting up its own YouTube channel it would be able to increase...

On 29 March 2018, KommAustria, Austria’s regulatory authority for audiovisual media including radio, rejected applications by Antenne “Österreich” und Medieninnovationen GmbH for a nationwide commercial terrestrial radio broadcasting licence in accordance with sentences 1 and 2 of Article 28c(2) of the Austrian Privatradio-Gesetz (Private Radio Broadcasting Act - PrR-G) (Case no. KOA 1.010/18-010). In the proceedings, Antenne “Österreich” und Medieninnovationen GmbH had argued that it met the requirements to hold a nationwide radio broadcasting licence under Article 28c(2) PrR-G. The applicant’s...

The Austrian government coalition between the People’s Party (ÖVP) and the Freedom Party (FPÖ), which has been in power since the last parliamentary elections, has included a number of issues relevant to media law in its coalition agreement; notably, both parties are keen to promote technical innovation in the form of digitisation as well as traditional media policy measures to support the country’s media. As far as digitisation is concerned, the coalition partners are pursuing a comprehensive research strategy with a treaty on research, technology and innovation, along with measures to improve...