Spain

[ES] Non Adoption of a Bill on Media Concentration

IRIS 1997-10:1/25

Alberto Pérez Gómez

Entidad publica empresarial RED.ES

In June, the party Izquierda Unida (United Left) presented a Bill on media concentration. This Bill proposed an increase of the existing disclosure obligations measures for media companies; introduced press concentration and cross-ownership rules, which at the moment do not have a specific regulation in Spain; proposed the reinforcement of the ownership limits for radio, and especially for national and local TV and for cable TV, this meaning that a company wouldn't be allowed to own, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the capital of a TV broadcaster; and proposed the creation of a Consejo de la Comunicación (Communication Council), composed of politicians, journalists and representatives of media companies, who would control the application of these rules, thus creating for the first time in Spain an independent body for the media, that would substitute the Government as the authority in this field.

On 28 October, the Bill was voted in the Congreso (the Lower House of Parliament) in order to decide wether it was going to be "taken in consideration" ( toma de consideración ), i.e., if it would be accepted for further discussion or rejected. The Bill received the votes of Izquierda Unida and PSOE, the socialist party, that stated that although they didn't agree with everything on the Bill, there was room for improvement in the amendment phase of the procedure, and that it was possible to reach a wide agreement at least in relation with the rules on disclosure obligations and the creation of an independent body. But the Bill was finally rejected by a narrow margin (158 votes against 156), because the Popular Party and some other smaller parties opposed the law, considering that the proposed criteria were too restrictives, and also alleging that if the EC was to adopt a Directive in this matter, it was better to wait for it.