Search results : 1094

On 23 July 2012, the European Commission announced that it had written to Portugal, Slovenia, Finland (concerning the region of Åland) and the United Kingdom (concerning Gibraltar) to seek information on the implementation of the Audiovisual Media Services (AVMS) Directive. In 2011, the European Commission had already sent fact-finding letters to twenty-four member states (including Finland and the United Kingdom). The European Commission is looking for clarifications on the following issues: the country of origin principle and jurisdiction issues; audiovisual commercial communications; the protection...

On 17 April 2012 President Islam Karimov of Uzbekistan signed a resolution “On the State Programme on technical and technological transfer to digital television broadcasting in Uzbekistan”. The document envisages the switch-over taking place in two stages: the first stage in 2012-15 and the second stage in 2016-17. Full introduction of digital television is scheduled by the end of 2017. The government plans to retain both analogue and digital broadcasting until 1 January 2018. Until 1 January 2018 the state radio transmission centre and the National Broadcasting Company (NTRKU) are entitled to...

On 21 June 2012, the Supreme Court issued a much-commented decision on indecency. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently amended its indecency policy to find fleeting expletives and fleeting nudity actionably indecent. In 2009, the US Supreme Court (the Court) in Fox v. FCC upheld the amended policy and remanded the challenge by Fox Television Stations Inc. (Fox) to the Second Circuit for further proceedings consistent with its holding (see IRIS 2009-6/32). On 21 June 2012, the Court resolved the case by invalidating penalties levied against Fox for airing fleeting expletives and...

On 11 July 2012 the State Duma (parliament) adopted in the final reading a federal statute titled О внесении изменений в Федеральный закон “О защите детей от информации, причиняющей вред их здоровью и развитию” и отдельные законодательные акты Российской Федерации (“On amendments to the Federal Statute “On the Protection of Minors against Information Detrimental to their Health and Development” and to other legal Acts of the Russian Federation”). It was signed into law by President Vladimir Putin on 28 July 2012. The new Statute introduces a number of changes to the regulation of Internet, not...

On 19 June 2012, the Romanian Chamber of Deputies (lower Chamber of the Parliament) rejected by a large majority a Bill on the revision and modification of Law no. 196/2003 on preventing and fighting pornography. The Bill was rejected by 184 votes to 6, with two abstentions. On 26 April 2011, the Bill had been rejected by the Romanian Senate (upper Chamber), although the Chamber of Deputies took the final decision (see IRIS 2003-1/27, IRIS 2004-2/36, and IRIS 2011-6/28). The bill had been proposed by the Romanian Government in January 2011. It aimed to amend and supplement the legal framework on...