IRIS newsletter 2026-3
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European Audiovisual Observatory
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Executive Director: Pauline Durand-Vialle
Maja Cappello, Editor • Amélie Lacourt, Justine Radel, Sophie Valais, Diego de la Vega, Deputy Editors (European Audiovisual Observatory)
Documentation/Press Contact: Alison Hindhaugh
Tel.: +33 (0)3 90 21 60 10
E-mail: alison.hindhaugh@coe.int
Proofreading of original texts and machine translations:
Linda Byrne • Aurélie Courtinat • Paul Green • Barbara Grokenberger • Catherine Koleda • Udo Lücke • Marco Polo Sarl • Erwin Rohwer • Sonja Schmidt • Nathalie Sturlèse • Ulrike Welsch • David Windsor
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Coordination: Cyril Chaboisseau, European Audiovisual Observatory
ISSN 2078-6158
© 2025 European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg (France)
To promote inclusive language, we follow the guidelines of the Council of Europe.
Editorial
On 10 March 2026, the European Parliament adopted its long-awaited resolution on copyright and generative AI in the belief that, in order "to protect the creative sector in the EU, the use of copyrighted work by artificial intelligence requires transparency and fair remuneration", which would be currently lacking. In this line of thought, Denmark also approved its first extended collective license for text and data mining and the use of works by AI tools.
AI does indeed pose significant challenges to the enforcement of copyright, but these are not the only ones. The remarkable capabilities of GenAI carry significant risks, ranging from the creation of content that could potentially harm minors, to disinformation.
Regarding the former, the German Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media (Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz - KJM) recently welcomed the opportunities offered by an AI-supported auto-identification procedures for age verification online.
Regarding the latter, the last few years have seen the stakes go up in the fight against disinformation. What was already a challenge has turned into a painstakingly difficult exercise, with gen-AI tools acting as a catalyst for the generation and spread of disinformation. Armenia recently joined the club of countries where new laws attempt to respond to this challenge, with the Armenian Parliament’s recent approval of a bill to restrict the spread of harmful audiovisual information affecting citizens and preventing the dissemination of disinformation and the promotion of violence and hate speech.
Outside of the AI realm, advertising has also recently been a key topic in some regulatory decisions. In France, for example, Meta was ordered to implement measures to filter false advertising for online gambling using the "Barrière" trademark. In Hungary as well, the regulator fined both public and private broadcasters for breaching advertising rules ranging from surreptitious commercial communications to the volume of advertisements.
If you want to delve deeper into some of these topics, I warmly invite you to explore our latest reports on “Enforcing rules on illegal content and disinformation online”, “Platform regulation, disinformation and FIMI in Ukraine” and “Advertising of “junk food” in European and national law. Focus on self-regulation”.
Enjoy the read,
Maja Cappello, Editor
European Audiovisual Observatory
International
CoE: European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights: more violations of ECHR rights in the case of investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova
In a judgment of 27 January 2026, the European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), found that the human rights of the investigative journalist, Khadija Ismayilova, had been violated by Azerbaijan under Articles 6, 7, 10 and 18 juncto 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). This is the fourth case and the fourth finding of violations of ECHR rights arising out of the same broad set of factual circumstances (see: Khadija Ismayilova v. Azerbaijan, IRIS 2019-3:1/1; Khadija Ismayilova v. Azerbaijan (No. 2); and Khadija Ismayilova v. Azerbaijan (No. 3), IRIS 2020-7:1/20). The applicant...
CoE: European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights: new judgment shows “the spirit of Lingens” lives on
The European Court of Human Rights’ judgment in Pešić v. Serbia, rendered on 13 January 2026, deals with the limits of permissible criticism of politicians under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The Court held unanimously that the applicant’s right to freedom of expression had been violated after damages were awarded against her in civil proceedings arising out of her online criticism of a government minister. The applicant was a former politician and a long-time political activist. In 2016, several buildings were demolished in the centre of Belgrade...
EUROPEAN UNION
EU: European Commission
Publication of guidelines relating to Article 18 of EMFA
On 6 February, the European Commission published guidelines relating to Article 18 of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA). This article introduces safeguards to protect content on online platforms, and professional journalism in particular, from unjustified removal. The guidelines follow a targeted consultation involving a range of stakeholders including media service providers, civil society organisations, fact-checking bodies, the regulatory authority and representatives of the providers of very large online platforms (VLOPs). Within this framework, VLOPs are required to inform media...
EU: European Parliament
European Parliament resolution on copyright and generative AI
On 10 March 2026, the European Parliament adopted a long-awaited resolution on copyright and generative AI (Resolution 2025/2058(INI)), presenting opportunities and challenges regarding the use of copyrighted works by AI models and systems and how to ensure transparency and fair remuneration of rights holders. The report, led by MEP Axel Voss, was voted 460 in favour, to 71 against, with 88 abstentions. In its Resolution, the Parliament addresses the increasing use of generative AI systems that rely massively on protected content, without authorisation from, or compensation for, the rights holders....
NATIONAL
Armenia
[AM] Parliament approves bill to restrict the spread of harmful audiovisual information
On 13 February 2026, the National Assembly (parliament) of Armenia approved, in the first reading, a bill to restrict the spread of harmful audiovisual information affecting citizens, and to prevent dissemination of disinformation or promotion of violence and hate speech. The support for the bill to amend the relevant provisions of the 2020 Statute “On Audiovisual Media” was significant, with 58 deputies voting for, 26 against, and one abstention. The bill was drafted by the Ministry of High-Tech Industry. According to the Ministry, the current law primarily regulates the 26 television...
Belgium
[BE] Cooperation between Arcom and the CSA following launch of an advertising service aimed at Belgium by France Télévisions
Two regulatory authorities, one French and the other French-speaking Belgian, have reached an agreement on the procedure to be applied in the event of complaints relating to the Belgian versions of several French television services produced by the French public company France Télévisions. The French audiovisual regulator (Autorité de Régulation de la Communication Audiovisuelle et Numérique - Arcom) is responsible for regulating the France 2, France 3 and France 5 services. A Belgian version of these three services has been launched, with commercial...
Cyprus
[CY] Publication of Cyprus country report on media literacy by the Radio Television and Digital Services Authority
Pursuant to Article 33a(2) of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive 2018/1808 (AVMSD) and to paragraph 5 of Article 30C of the Radio and Television Broadcasters Law 7(I)/1998 (as amended), the Radio Television and Digital Services Authority of Cyprus (RTDSA) has submitted to the European Commission its three-year country report on media literacy. It should be noted that the RTDSA has a statutory mandate to promote and develop media literacy skills in Cyprus. This report was also communicated to the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth of the Republic of Cyprus....
Germany
[DE] AGF publishes 2025 German TV and video review
On 8 January 2026, AGF Videoforschung, a company that conducts impartial research in the German TV and video sector, focusing particularly on audience measurement, published its annual TV and video review for 2025. The review concludes that consumption of audiovisual content is characterised by an increasingly diverse media landscape and changing usage situations. While video content is increasingly spread across different distribution channels and providers, linear television remains a core component of the media market, especially for current, socially relevant and live content. AGF...
[DE] Federal Court of Justice upholds conviction of journalist for publishing investigation files
In a ruling dated 31 July 2025 (no. 5 StR 78/25), the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) dismissed a journalist's appeal against his conviction by the Regional Court of Berlin I (Landgericht Berlin I) on 18 October 2024 for publishing decisions from an investigation into members of the "Letzte Generation" group. The regional court's decision is now legally binding. In August 2023, the accused journalist had published on the internet decisions issued by the investigating judge of the Munich District Court (Amtsgericht München) in an ongoing...
[DE] KJM approves AI-supported auto-identification age verification system
In mid-January 2026, the Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media (Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz - KJM) approved the use of an AI-powered auto-identification procedure as an age verification system and thus recognised it as an appropriate youth protection mechanism within the meaning of the German State Treaty on the Protection of Minors in the Media (Jugendmedienschutz-Staatsvertrag - JMStV). The mechanism, which combines an automated ID document check with a biometric facial scan and a subsequent AI-supported comparison with the extracted features, can therefore be used by...
Denmark
[DK] First extended collective licence approval for text and data mining and the use of works by AI
On 8 December 2025, the Danish Ministry of Culture granted its first approval of an extended collective licence for a collective management organisation concerning text and data mining and the use of works in AI tools. Under section 11 b of the Danish Copyright Act, which corresponds to Article 4 of the Digital Service Market (DSM) Directive, anyone with lawful access to a work may extract and reproduce copies of the work for the purposes of text and data mining, provided that the rights holder has not expressly reserved the use of the work in an appropriate manner. Several key rights holder...
Spain
[ES] The audiovisual sector in Spain advances in accessibility
As the body responsible for overseeing the implementation of audiovisual accessibility measures regulated by Spanish legislation, the National Commission on Markets and Competition (Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia - CNMC) has published a report on the plans developed by nationwide audiovisual service providers for the 2023-2025 triennium. The report, which will be submitted to the European Commission in compliance with the Audiovisual Media Services Directive, highlights the fact that the Spanish audiovisual sector has made significant progress in ensuring accessibility...
France
[FR] Arcom imposes two sanctions totalling EUR 100 000 on CNews for discriminatory comments and failure to control airtime
In two decisions issued on 5 February 2026, the French audiovisual regulator (Autorité de Régulation de la Communication Audiovisuelle et Numérique – Arcom) ruled on two disputed sequences of the programme "L'Heure des Pros 2 Eté", broadcast on CNews on 8 and 12 August 2025. During the programme shown on 12 August 2025, a female columnist made comments associating all Palestinians with the perpetrators of the terrorist attacks of 7 October, describing them as "savages" and "appalling bloodthirsty people", and attributing...
[FR] Council of State validates Arcom's reorganisation of channel numbering
In 2024, following a call for tenders for the allocation of terrestrial television services, some channels did not have their licences renewed (C8 and NRJ12), a number of new channels were authorised (including T18 and NOVO19) and Canal+ ceased broadcasting on DTT. Through decision no. 2025-01 of 9 January 2025, the French audiovisual regulator (Autorité de Régulation de la Communication Audiovisuelle et Numérique – Arcom) changed the allocation of "logical numbers" to terrestrial television services broadcast in mainland France in order to improve the...
[FR] Meta ordered to implement filtering measures for false advertising for online gambling using the "Barrière" trademark
The Barrière group brought an action before the criminal court after it observed that a large number of advertisements (more than 2 400) were being diffused on Meta's Facebook and Instagram networks, reproducing its EU semi-figurative and word marks without its authorisation in order to promote an online casino games application, which is illegal in France. Some of the advertisements showed the front of its casinos. The judge at the Paris judicial court ordered Meta to implement measures to filter out false advertising reproducing the group's trademarks, and to retain...
United Kingdom
[GB] Ofcom escalates Online Safety Act enforcement with new fines over age-assurance failures on adult websites
The UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, has intensified enforcement of the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA) by imposing two additional financial penalties on operators of adult websites that failed to implement legally required age-assurance measures. The decisions, issued in February 2026 against Kick Online Entertainment S.A. (Kick) and 8579 LLC, follow earlier enforcement action against AVS Group and other providers (see IRIS 2026-1:1/25) and demonstrate that the regulator has moved decisively from oversight of compliance programmes to active sanctioning. Notably, the GBP 1.35 million penalty...
Hungary
[HU] The Media Council Fines TV2 for Content Classification and Human Dignity Violations
Between January and February 2026, the Media Council of the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (Nemzeti Média és Hírközlési Hatóság - NMHH) issued two decisions regarding the commercial broadcaster TV2 Zrt., imposing fines totalling approximately 20 million Hungarian forints (HUF) (EUR 52 700). The cases involve a breach of age-rating provisions in a music talent show and a violation of human dignity during a current affairs programme. In both instances, the Media Council also levied personal fines against the media service provider’s...
[HU] Media Council fines public and private broadcasters for breaching advertising rules
In late January 2026, the Media Council of the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (Nemzeti Média és Hírközlési Hatóság - NMHH) issued several decisions regarding non-compliance with advertising regulations by both private and public service media providers. The administrative body penalised ATV Zrt., Hír TV Zrt., and the public service broadcaster Duna Médiaszolgáltató Nonprofit Zrt. for various violations, ranging from surreptitious commercial communication to the volume of advertisements. As part of its...
Netherlands
[NL] The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets launches an investigation into Roblox under the Digital Services Act
On 30 January 2026, the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (Autoriteit Consument en Markt - ACM) launched an investigation into Roblox, an online game platform and game creation system, in relation to possible risks faced by minors on this platform in the EU. In its investigation, ACM will assess whether the game platform complies with Article 28 of the Digital Services Act (DSA), which requires providers of online platforms accessible to minors to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure a high level of privacy, safety and security of minors, on their service. Roblox...
Portugal
[PT] Portugal to ban social networks for children under 16
The ruling party in Portugal wants to prevent teenagers under 16 from freely accessing social networks. A law proposal was debated and approved at the Parliament last February. The bill will now go to committee for detailed debate. With the votes of the majority of the parties (except the far-right and Christian parties), the bill states that children aged 13 or older would only be able to access social networks with the express and verified consent of their parents or legal guardians. Creating a new account for children under the age of 13 would not be possible and, according to the bill,...
Russian Federation
[RU] Federal Law No. 324-FZ extends "traditional values" restrictions to online audiovisual content
Federal Law No. 324-FZ of 31 July 2025 came into force on 1 March 2026. It prohibits the distribution of audiovisual works containing materials that "discredit traditional Russian spiritual and moral values and/or propagandise the rejection thereof" (дискредитирующие традиционные российские духовно-нравственные ценности и (или) пропагандирующие их отрицание). The law amends Federal Law No. 149-FZ of 27 July 2006 ("On Information") and Federal Law No. 126-FZ of 22 August 1996 ("On State Support for Cinematography"), adding this as grounds for refusing or revoking a...
Ukraine
[UA] National regulator explains registration of video-sharing platforms
On 5 January 2025, the National Council on Television and Radio (NCTR), the independent media regulator in Ukraine, issued explanations and clarifications regarding the registration by the NCTR of certain media services that do not use radio frequencies. The NCTR specifically referred to the formula of paragraph 38 of part 1 of Article 1 (Definitions of notions) of the 2022 Statute “On the Media” which defines a “video-sharing platform” as a platform “a separate part of which or an integral functionality of which is the distribution to a general audience for...
