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On 31 October 2023, the senate (Eerste Kamer) approved an important bill amending the Media Act (Mediawet) 2008. The bill was introduced in July 2022 by the Secretary of State for Culture and Media (Staatssecretaris Cultuur en Media) (see IRIS 2022-8/16) and will now require major streaming platforms – with an annual Dutch turnover of more than EUR 10 million – to invest 5% of that turnover in Dutch audiovisual productions such as series, films and documentaries (see IRIS 2023-7/10). The primary objective is to encourage Dutch cultural offerings – sports are explicitly excluded...

On 27 November 2023, the Secretary of State for Culture and Media issued a high-profile provisional decision, refusing a request by the Stichting Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (Dutch Public Broadcasting Foundation - NPO) to withdraw the recognition of the broadcaster Ongehoord Nederland (ON) as a public broadcaster. This follows the NPO having imposed three separate fines on the broadcaster, including a EUR 131 000 fine in April 2023 for “systemic violation” of the NPO Journalistic Code in relation to the broadcaster’s news programme; a EUR 84 000 fine in July 2022 for an earlier...

On 25 October 2023, the Nationaal Coördinator Antisemitismebestrijding (National Coordinator for Combating Anti-Semitism) issued a noteworthy recommendation, stating that both the Autoriteit Consument & Markt (Consumer and Markets Authority – ACM), and the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (Dutch Data Protection Authority – AP), “must immediately strictly monitor” whether online platforms Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) are complying with the law and tackling online anti-Semitism. Notably, the ACM will be designated as the national Digital Services Coordinator in the...

On 25 October 2023, the Commissariaat voor de Media (Dutch Media Authority – CvdM) published updated guidance for video influencers in the Netherlands. Notably, this resulted from recent discussions by the CvdM with video influencers who fall under its supervision, but “who do not yet sufficiently comply” with the rules under the Mediawet (Media Act), transposing the revised EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) (see IRIS 2019-1/3 and IRIS 2021-1/24). This follows an earlier supervisory investigation into video-uploader compliance in May 2023, with the CvdM noting that...

On 14 September 2023, the Autoriteit Consument en Markt (the Netherlands Authority for Consumer and Markets) (ACM) issued a notable decision that the Dutch telecom provider KPN is not yet permitted to acquire rival telecom provider Youfone Nederland, as the acquisition needs “further investigation”. KPN’s services consist of offering electronic communications services via its fixed and mobile networks, including telephony, data, internet, and television services; while Youfone Nederland is a mobile network operator that uses KPN’s network, and offers mobile telecommunications...