Lithuania

[LT] Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania supplements rules on inspection of economic entities and changes definition of children’s programmes

IRIS 2021-4:1/8

Indre Barauskiene

TGS Baltic

Implementing new changes of the Law on Provision of Information to the Public of the Republic of Lithuania, the Radio and Television Commission of Lithuania (LRTK) supplemented and changed its former decision on the Approval of the rules of inspection of the activities of economic entities performed by the LRTK.

Amendments to the decision introduced two additional grounds allowing LRTK to carry out unscheduled inspections:

when it receives a request from other regulatory institutions; and when it receives an anonymous complaint concerning the acts or omissions of a particular economic operator, where the assessment of the available information raises suspicions that the activities of the economic operator may endanger the values protected by the law.

The decision also changed the definition of children’s programmes. Previously, programmes for children were not defined by the viewers' age, but by the programme's content and form. It was defined as a programme which aimed at developing a creative, thinking and curious personality, promoting family values and love of nature. These criteria are no longer in place. Children’s programmes are now determined only by the age of the targeted audience, which should be below 18 years old. It is also envisaged that programmes whose target audience includes people of all ages are not considered to be children's programmes.

Amendments came into force on 5 February 2021.