Croatia

[HR] Rulebook on TV Broadcasters for the Purpose of the Protection of Minors

IRIS 2009-1:1/23

Nives Zvonarić

Ministry of Culture, Zagreb, Croatia

The Council for Electronic Media adopted a Rulebook on TV broadcasters for the purpose of the protection of minors in April 2008 (see IRIS 2008-7: 14). Implementaion of the Rulebook by TV broadcasters was to commence subsequent to the receipt of standard graphic marks by the Council.

After receiving the graphic marks, broadcasters on the national level (commercial) notified the Council that they could not start with the implementation of the Rulebook because of technical deficiencies and aesthetically unacceptable suggested graphic marks.

To overcome the implementation problems, the Council for Electronic Media adopted a new Rulebook on TV broadcasters for the purpose of the protection of minors, on the basis of Article 15, paragraph 5, of the Law on Electronic Media. In this Rulebook visual symbols are changed as follows:

The graphic marks refer to the following programme content categories and are to be implemented accordingly:

1. Category 18: This programme content should not be broadcast between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. During the entire broadcast the following mark must be visible: a transparent circle with the number “18” written in red.

2. Category 15: This programme content should not be broadcast from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., and the complete broadcast must be marked with a transparent circle with the number “15” written in orange.

3. Category 12: This program content should not be broadcasted between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., and must carry, for the duration of the broadcast, a transparent circle with the number “12” written in green.

The graphic symbols should be in the right upper corner of the screen, and the broadcasters have to design them according to their usual design. The symbols shall not be smaller than the usual broadcaster logo.

Every rerun of programme content is included by the Rulebook. Other provisions remain unchanged.