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In February 2013, the Hungarian Government submitted another bill amending the media laws to the National Assembly. The amendment is based on the negotiations between the Hungarian Government and the Council of Europe. In May 2012, the Council published a report with a host of recommendations on transforming Hungary’s new media regulation (see IRIS 2011-4/2). The amendment of Hungary’s media laws, in early summer 2012, addressed parts of these recommendations in a rather incomplete manner (see IRIS 2012-8/100) Among these recommendations, the ones addressed by the recently proposed amendment −...

On 4 January 2013, the Magyar Köztársaság Alkotmánybíróság (Constitutional Court of Hungary) annulled the new Election Act which a.o. amended regulations on political advertising. The provisions gave the exclusive right to disseminate political advertisements to the public service media. Subsequent to the ruling, the government submitted a draft amendment to the Magyarország Alaptörvénye (Fundamental Law, Constitution of Hungary). The content of the amendment implements the wording of the provision, which the Constitutional Court had eliminated, into the Constitution. On 26 November 2012, Hungary’s...

In October 2012, the RTL Group’s new channel, RTL II, as RTL Klub’s twin channel, was launched in Hungary and was followed shortly in November by SuperTV2, the twin channel of TV2, the second largest commercial broadcasting channel in Hungary. In recent years, the Hungarian programme selection has grown continuously as part of the provider’s economic growth. Typically, this meant new channels owned by the mother company registered outside Hungary, such as Film+, Sorozat+ or Cool TV by the RTL Group, or Fem3 and Pro4 by TV2. The smaller providers followed suit. Audience data collected by Nielsen...

The applicant in this case, Ms Judit Szima, was the chairperson of the Tettrekész Police Trade Union. She published a number of writings on the Trade Union’s website, which was effectively under her editorial control. In some of these writings she sharply criticized the police management, also referring to outstanding remunerations due to police staff, alleged nepotism and undue political influence in the force, as well as dubious qualifications of senior police staff. In 2010 Szima was convicted for instigation to insubordination. The Military Bench of the Budapest Court of Appeal...

Thus far, the Hungarian Parliament has been compelled on four occasions to substantially amend the new media laws, which had been adopted in three stages in 2010. The amendments responded to some aspects of criticisms leveled at the existing regulations, but at the same time they failed to remedy a substantial portion of international and domestic objections regarding the disproportionate curtailment of the freedom of the press. The most comprehensive package of amendments was adopted during the summer of 2012, after the media laws had been examined by the Constitutional Court in December 2011...