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On 26 February 2009 the Latvian Saeima (the Parliament) reviewed in second reading amendments to the Law on Press and Other Mass Media. The amendments were initially planned to address a minor issue on the payment of a State fee for the registration of media in the Registry of Mass Media. However, after the first reading the Ministry of Justice submitted a new proposal for the amendments, which immediately caused serious concerns over threats to media freedom. The proposal suggested that the Law on Press and Other Mass Media should provide stricter rules for publishing and discussing materials...

On 15 January 2009 Saeima (the Parliament) adopted amendments to laws governing pre-election campaigns: the Law on Pre-Election Campaigns before the Elections of Saeima and the European Parliament and the Law on Pre-Election Campaigns before the Municipal Elections. The amendments seek to address the loopholes in the financing of election campaigns discovered in the last Saeima election campaign (in 2006), as well as to specify the duties of broadcasters within the election campaigns. The amendments state that the period for pre-election campaigns starts 120 days before the election. Hitherto...

The National Broadcasting Council of Latvia (NBCL) has finalised the process of drafting a new Audio and Audiovisual Media Services Law (Draft Law), which is planned to replace the Radio and Television Law currently in force (see IRIS 2008-6: 13). The Draft Law applies to providers of audio and audiovisual media services under the jurisdiction of Latvia who provide their services in public electronic communication networks, notwithstanding the mode of transmission. The Draft Law uses substantially different terminology from the existing Radio and Television Law. The terminology corresponds to...

On 2 September 2008 the Cabinet of Ministers of Latvia finally adopted the long awaited regulations on the introduction of digital broadcasting in Latvia. The authorisation to the Cabinet of Ministers to adopt such regulations was provided in 2002 by respective amendments to the Radio and Television Law (31 October 2002). However, it took almost six years and several changes of government to agree on the respective regulations. The new regulations refer only to the digital terrestrial broadcasting of television programmes, and do not regulate radio broadcasting or digital broadcasting in formats...

On 10 April 2008 Latvijas Republikas Augstākās tiesas Senāta Administratīvo lietu departaments (the Administrative Department of the Supreme Court Senate of Latvia) adopted an interesting judgment regarding the definition of relevant market for films. The judgment may contribute to careful application of competition law to the audio-visual sector. The judgment was adopted in a dispute between a film distributor SIA Rimaida and the Competition Council of Latvia. The Competition Council had recognised in its decision that Rimaida holds a dominant position with respect to the retail market of renting...