Slovakia

[SK] Promotion of National Films through an Amendment to the Law on Licences

IRIS 2006-10:1/31

Jana Markechová

Markechova Law Offices

The Slovakian Ministry of Culture intends, by initiating cooperation with Slovakian television (STV), to promote more strongly national film and television production. The plan is to ensure guarantees for joint film productions and also the issue of a new appropriate legal framework. According to the plans of the new Culture Minister, the Ministry for Culture is to submit during the second quarter of 2007 a draft law on an audiovisual fund.

In October the Ministry for Culture was already doing the preparatory work for a draft law on services provided by Slovakian broadcasting to the public. With this new law, which will replace the current law on licence fees, the financial situation of the STV is to be improved. It also will contribute to making STV a significant producer of Slovakian films. The idea of the Minister for Culture is that as early as 2008 at least ten feature films should be produced per year. With the new law another objective is to ensure that fees are also paid by those households which, according to statistical calculations, own a television but do not declare ownership. According to a statement by the legal representative of STV the collection of such fees by the public broadcasting institute would bring in each year an additional SKK 400 to 550 million (this comes to about EUR 11.8-14.8 million). From the additional financial resources, STV would like to invest up to 85% in producing programmes, which also includes the making of Slovakian films.