20. 12. 2011

ANEM on Draft Law on Cinematography

Recently adopted Media Strategy has only affirmed that some legal provisions regulating public information are conflicting and legally colliding, which is causing a serious disorder in the functioning of the public information system, whereas the state has committed by the Strategy to eliminate these contradictions in its legislation. However, contrary to this commitment, on December 8, 2011, the Government adopted and submitted to the Parliament for adoption, without conducting a public discussion, the Draft Law on Cinematography which, instead of acknowledging these provisions of the Strategy, has created new collisions with existing solutions, as it is in direct conflict with the Strategy as well as the applicable articles of the Broadcasting Law and the Law on Electronic Communications.

Namely, Article 18, paragraph 1, points 3 and 4 of the Draft Law provides for the film industry incentives with funds acquired from the regulatory bodies, that is, as much as 20% of the funds of the Republic Broadcasting Agency (RBA) and 10% of the funds of the Republic Agency for Electronic Communications (RATEL), charged from broadcasters and telecommunications operators by these regulators. These provisions are in direct conflict with the provisions of Article 34 of the Broadcasting Law, which does not provide for the Agency to foresee redundancies in its financial plan, apart from reserves for incidental expenses and pre-determined purpose of acquired balance. The above provisions are also contrary to the provision of Article 66 of the Broadcasting Law, which stipulates criteria for determining the fee, none of which is the allocation of funding for local film industry inducement. The proposed solution is in direct conflict with Article 27 Law on Electronic Communications, stipulating that the balance between revenues and expenditures of the Agency for Electronic Communications be paid into the budget for the support and development of electronic communications and information society.

Considering that for these reasons this Draft Law is in direct conflict with the applicable regulations in the field of broadcasting and recently adopted Media Strategy, as well as that the burden of illegal incentives for cinematography development will fall onto the electronic media, ANEM issued a statement on December 14, 2011, urging the Serbian Parliament not to adopt the Draft Law on Cinematography in the version sent to the Government for approval. ANEM statement was supported by other associations, NUNS and UNS, which had joined ANEM appeal in their joint statement issued on December 15, noting their agreement with ANEM opinion.

Subsequently, on December 20, 2011, ANEM forwarded its written Remarks on Article 18 Paragraph 1 Points 3 and 4 of the Draft Law on Cinematography with proposed amendments to the Speaker and the Secretary of the National Parliament, the Chairman and the Secretary of the Parliament's Culture and Information Committee, presidents of all parliamentary groups, as well as to the Minister and the State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Media and Information Society, urging them to do all in their power to delete, with the corresponding amendment to Article 18, points 3 and 4 from the paragraph 1 of the said article.

In its statement and letter, ANEM noted that the fee, paid by broadcasters for the acquired right to broadcast the program, had the sole purpose to provide financial independence of the Republic Broadcasting Agency, whereas meddling of the state in the this fee by reason of its allocation for other purposes, undermined the independence of the Broadcasting Agency. ANEM also pointed out that such a Government's proposal for ensuring funds for inducement of domestic film industry was not only in conflict with applicable legal provisions, which had put independent regulatory bodies under financial strain, but was also passed without any analysis of the impact on the financing of work of independent regulatory bodies, as well as on the sectors of broadcasting and electronic communications in Serbia as a whole, which could have serious negative effects on their functioning.

ANEM considers it absolutely unacceptable that the burden of domestic film industry incentives falls onto the electronic media, including radio stations that do not air cinematographic works at all, whereas television stations, even when they air these works, are already paying the broadcasting fee in an amount determined by the market, together with due taxes, including deduction tax on income of foreign copyright owners when buying foreign cinematographic works, ranging up to 20%.

You can read ANEM letter with comments and proposed amendments to the Draft Law on Cinematography here (available only in Serbian)