IRIS newsletter 2024-7

Publisher:

European Audiovisual Observatory
76, allée de la Robertsau
F-67000 STRASBOURG

Tel. : +33 (0) 3 90 21 60 00
Fax : +33 (0) 3 90 21 60 19
E-mail: obs@obs.coe.int
www.obs.coe.int

Comments and Suggestions to: iris@obs.coe.int

Executive Director: Susanne Nikoltchev

 

Maja Cappello, Editor • Sophie Valais, Amélie Lacourt, Justine Radel, Deputy Editors (European Audiovisual Observatory)

Documentation/Press Contact: Alison Hindhaugh

Tel.: +33 (0)3 90 21 60 10

E-mail: alison.hindhaugh@coe.int

Translations:

Sabine Bouajaja, European Audiovisual Observatory (co-ordination) • Paul Green • Marco Polo Sarl • Nathalie Sturlèse • Brigitte Auel •   Erwin Rohwer • Sonja Schmidt • Ulrike Welsch

Corrections:

Sabine Bouajaja, European Audiovisual Observatory (co-ordination) • Sophie Valais and Amélie Lacourt • Linda Byrne • Glenn Ford • David Windsor • Aurélie Courtinat •  Barbara Grokenberger  

Web Design:

Coordination: Cyril Chaboisseau, European Audiovisual Observatory
ISSN 2078-6158

© 2024 European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg (France)

 

Editorial

A lot of things are still in the works before the summer break.

For those who would like to stay closer to Europe, you may be interested to read about recent regulatory developments, such as in Austria with the revision of the Data Protection Act regarding media privilege; in Denmark, with amendments to the Copyright Act; in Germany, with the passing of the Film Support Act; or in the United Kingdom with the Media Act becoming law. If you're in the mood for a change of scenery you will probably want to know more about the progress of California's AI safety bill, which is designed to reduce the risks posed by AI. However, the bill is facing strong opposition from the Silicon Valley’s tech giants who believe that these requirements would discourage companies from developing large AI systems or keeping their technology open-source.

In the case of decisions taken by courts or regulators, social media platforms seem to be in the spotlight once again. In Spain, Meta's Election Day Information and Voter Information Unit functionalities were suspended for three months for failing to comply with the data protection principles of lawfulness, data minimisation, and storage limitation. Also related to the same platform, a Belgian judgement concluded that Meta should pay damages to a politician after his page was shadow banned. In the UK, fin-fluencers face legal action for promoting unauthorised high-risk investments on social media. The Italian regulator also blocked Russia Today content on YouTube and X. Meanwhile, Russia has banned 81 media outlets from the EU.

There is also more exciting news from the Observatory: the Department for Legal Information is looking to strengthen its team with the recruitment of a Legal Advisor. This could be the job that you are looking for! So don’t hesitate to spread the word and encourage people with the corresponding profile who are interested in joining the Observatory team to apply before 18 July 2024.

With this final note, I wish you a relaxing summer break!

Enjoy the read!

 

Maja Cappello, Editor

European Audiovisual Observatory

 

International

COUNCIL OF EUROPE

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered another landmark judgment on the wholesale blocking of online media outlets and the right to freedom of expression and information. Azerbaijani courts had decided to block access to a series of media websites on the grounds that certain articles published on them had featured allegedly unlawful content under Azerbaijan’s media laws. The ECtHR found a violation of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) because the legal provisions on which the blocking orders were based awarded unlimited scope for unchecked arbitrariness...

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In its judgment in the case of Sokolovskiy v. Russia the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) applied and clarified its case law on freedom of expression and religious hate speech in the online environment (see also Lenis v. Greece, IRIS 2023-9:1/21 and Tagiyev et Huseynov v. Azerbaijan, IRIS 2020-2:1/16). It found a violation of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) because the applicant blogger, Ruslan Gennadyevich Sokolovskiy, had been convicted in breach of his right to freedom of expression. The ECtHR found that the sanctions imposed on Sokolovskiy for offending the...

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EUROPEAN UNION

An owner of 18 apartments, who provides his tenants with televisions equipped with indoor antennas, thus allowing them to watch music programmes, does (s)he communicate protected works to the public (his tenants) as understood by Article 3, paragraph 1 of Directive 2001/29? That is the preliminary ruling of the European Court of Justice's recent judgement on 20 June 2024.  According to this preliminary ruling, the answer depends on the owner’s intention: did (s)he do this for a profit motive (to attract people to the apartments) which would make it a communication to the public or...

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NATIONAL

On 12 June 2024, the National Council of Austria adopted a federal law amending the Data Protection Act. The new rules, which entered into force on 1 July 2024, aim to reorganise and differentiate the so-called media privilege in data protection. The revision became necessary following a decision by the Constitutional Court (VfGH), which ruled that a previous ruling – the blanket exemption for the media on the basis of Article 85 of the GDPR – was unconstitutional. According to the VfGH, data processing for journalistic purposes should not be exempted from the provisions of...

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The case concerns the payment of damages by META to a politician following a shadowban on his Facebook page. META found that the politician's posts violated Facebook's Terms of Service and Community Standards, with META citing hate speech, endorsing dangerous individuals and hate organisations, and bullying and intimidation as reasons. For that, in early 2021, temporary restrictions were imposed on the politician's personal and advertising Facebook pages. Among other measures, a shadowban was implemented, reducing the page's organic reach and resulting in fewer people seeing the...

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On 27 May 2024, the Kommission zur Ermittlung der Konzentration im Medienbereich (Commission on Concentration in the Media – KEK), a joint organ of the German state media authorities responsible for guaranteeing plurality of opinion in relation to the organisation of private television channels throughout Germany, published its 25th annual report. In the report, the KEK describes the media concentration investigations and other key areas of work it carried out in 2023, including analysis of the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on media diversity and plurality of opinion and the potential...

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On 22 May 2024, the German federal government approved a draft amendment to the Gesetz über Maßnahmen zur Förderung des deutschen Films (Act on measures to promote German film – FFG-E). The Federal Government Commissioner for Cultural and Media Affairs (BKM), Claudia Roth, had previously tabled a bill in February (see IRIS 2024-4:1/21). The cabinet draft contains numerous editorial amendments compared with the February bill, e.g. including the use of gender-neutral language. In terms of its content, the cabinet draft extends the remit of the Filmförderungsanstalt...

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On 5 June 2024, the Oberverwaltungsgericht Nordrhein-Westfalen (North Rhine-Westphalia Higher Administrative Court – OVG Nordrhein-Westfalen) decided in an expedited procedure that Westdeutsche Rundfunk (WDR) should invite the leading candidate for the “Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht” (BSW) party, which was taking part in European elections for the first time, to appear in the ARD programme “Wahlarena Europa 2024”. In the programme, broadcast three days before the election, Germany’s leading European Parliament candidates discussed topics related to European...

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The Danish Copyright Act has been amended several times over the past three years: In 2021, it was amended to implement the SatCabII Directive and Articles 15 and 17 of the DSM Directive on press publications and online content-sharing service providers, respectively. In 2023 it was amended to implement the rest of the DSM Directive, including the text and data mining provisions and measures to improve licensing practises and achieve a well-functioning marketplace for copyright. On 4 June 2024, the Danish Parliament enacted more amendments to the Danish Copyright Act....

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The Spanish government has revived the Proyecto de ley del Cine y de la Cultura Audiovisual (Cinema and Audiovisual Culture Bill) after it was put on hold last year following the dissolution of the Cortes Generales (Congress of Deputies and Senate) and the calling of elections by President Pedro Sanchez in June 2023. Various political groups had already tabled amendments to the bill, which had been endorsed by the Council of Ministers in December 2022 and submitted to parliamentary procedures in March 2023. In particular, the proposal of the right-wing political group Vox was rejected in its entirety....

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On 31 May, the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) issued a precautionary measure preventing Meta from implementing two electoral features it had planned to launch in the context of the European Parliament elections: Election Day Information (EDI) and Voter Information Unit (VIU). These functionalities would consist of providing information to Facebook and Instagram users about the European Union elections, based on the processing of their personal data (username, IP address, age, gender, and other information). The precautionary suspension is valid for a maximum period of three months. The...

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On 31 May, the Supreme Court dismissed an appeal lodged against the Council of Ministers' resolution authorising an amendment to the statute of the Spanish Radio and Television Corporation (RTVE) to grant executive functions to the broadcaster's interim president. Consequently, the current interim president of RTVE, Concepción Cascajosa, can continue, albeit temporarily, at the helm of the public broadcaster. The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal filed by the unions USO, UGT, and SI against the Council of Ministers' resolution of 4 October 2022. This resolution amended...

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The so-called ‘zombie drug’ xylazine was the subject of a report broadcast during an episode of “PAF avec Baba” on C8 on 12 September 2023. The programme’s presenter introduced the topic as follows: “Two videos have recently gone viral [...] where several people can be seen in the streets of Rouen, in the middle of France, behaving like zombies. According to the makers of the video, they had consumed xylazine, a drug that makes its users resemble zombies […]”. Images of people allegedly under the influence of the drug were then shown several times....

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In support of its application for the annulment of decision no. 2023-63 of 9 February 2023 in which it was fined by ARCOM (the French audiovisual and digital communications regulator), the C8 company requested that the Conseil constitutionnel (Constitutional Council) be asked to examine the constitutionality of several provisions of the Law of 30 September 1986 on freedom of communication. Under the disputed provisions, ARCOM is authorised to impose penalties without prejudice to any criminal court proceedings brought by the public prosecutor’s office or individuals under ordinary law for...

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In May 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the UK’s independent regulator of the financial services industry, announced that it had brought charges against a group of reality TV stars and social media influencers for promoting unauthorised investment schemes. This case marks the first prosecution by the FCA against individuals described by the neologism "finfluencer", highlighting the growing intersection between social media influence and financial regulations. The accused, including prominent figures from popular shows like Love Island and The Only Way is Essex, have...

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The Media Act 2024 (the Act) received royal assent on 24 May 2024. The Act increases the regulation of Video-on-Demand services (VOD). Many VOD services are not regulated by Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code (the Code) which determines standards for harmful, offensive material. The Act brings mainstream VOD services under the Code's rules concerning harmful content and impartiality. Non-UK based VOD services are not currently regulated by Ofcom and may now be designated as “Tier 1” in regulations yet to be published. Tier 1 mainstream VODs will comply with similar rules for...

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On 13 June 2024, Coimisiún na Meán (“the Commission”), the Irish media regulatory authority, published a Decision Framework on hosting service providers’ (HSP) exposure to terrorist content. Designated as a competent authority under Regulation (EU) 2021/784 addressing the dissemination of terrorist content online ("TCOR"), the Commission is required to determine whether an HSP is exposed to terrorist content, and if this is the case, to notify the said HSP. The Framework therefore sets out (1) a step-by-step approach to deeming an HSP as exposed to...

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On 20 June 2024, the High Court of Ireland confirmed the designation by Coimisiún na Meán (the Commission), the Irish media regulator, of online platforms Reddit and Tumblr as video-sharing platform (VSP) services. Under the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act of 2022 (OSMR Act), the Commission was granted the power to designate online services as VSPs, to which the online safety code to be drafted by the Commission may apply. The Commission issued ten designation notices (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Udemy, TikTok, LinkedIn, X, Pinterest, Tumblr and Reddit) at the end of 2023,...

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Due to the recent Regulation on Video Sharing Platforms (VSP) (Resolution No. 298/23/CONS) (see IRIS 2024-1:1/13 and 2024-3:1/15), the Italian Communications Authority (AGCOM) swiftly intervened to remove several videos disseminated on YouTube and X. Following Article 8 of the VSP Regulation and a report from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, AGCOM requested YouTube and X (formerly Twitter) to remove multiple videos related to a documentary produced by the Russia Today TV channel, accessible from Italy. The documentary in question offers a one-sided account of the events in the Donbass...

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On 17 June 2024, the Dutch government announced a significant new package of measures to tackle online disinformation, including a planned new “reporting facility” to allow citizens to report disinformation. The new measures were contained in a Letter to Parliament on behalf of the Ministery for Internal Affairs and Kingdom Relations (Ministerie Binnenlandse Zaken en Koninkrijksrelaties). These measures form part of the main Dutch government’s strategy to combat disinformation, which was announced in December 2022, and involves three different government ministries (see IRIS...

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On 25 June 2024, an important new mechanism came into effect, allowing journalists to shield personal data contained in the main public registry in the Netherlands from disclosure, where there is a “serious threat” to a journalist. This new mechanism is contained in an Agreement between the Dutch Association of Journalists (Nederlandse Vereniging van Journalisten) (NVJ) and the public administrative body that operates the public registry of land, including addresses (Dienst voor het Kadaster). The Agreement follows the announcement by the State Secretary for Culture and Media (Staatssecretaris...

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In May 2024, the Council of the EU suspended the broadcasting activities of four additional media outlets (Voice of Europe, RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta). According to the Council, they were spreading and supporting Russian propaganda.  Following this recent EU decision, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on 25 June 2024. It introduced countermeasures, limiting access to broadcasting resources in the Russian Federation for EU national and pan-European media outlets. It amounts in total to 81 media outlets. For instance, looking at some of the founding member...

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In California, the Safe and Secure Innovation for Frontier Artificial Intelligence Models Act (AI bill), introduced in February 2024, is causing quite a stir among Silicon Valley tech giants, including Meta and Alphabet.  The bill is designed to reduce the risks posed by AI and impose safety regulations on artificial intelligence companies. In particular, it requires these companies to test their systems and add safety measures to prevent them from being potentially manipulated to wipe out the state’s electric grid or help build chemical weapons. The bill only applies to advanced...

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