EU closer to product placement in TV shows
HELENA SPONGENBERG
09.05.2007 @ 09:27 CET
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – The reform of EU television rules to legalise product placement came one step closer on Tuesday (8 May) after MEPs adopted the second draft report on the EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive.
MEPs in the parliament's culture and education committee passed a report by German centre-right MEP Ruth Hieronymi, which paves the way for product placement to be permitted in the cinema, films for TV and sports broadcasts but not in news and children's programmes.
Product placement would be permitted in the cinema, films for TV and sports broadcasts (Photo: EUobserver.com)
Product placement - a form of advertising in which programme-makers are paid to display branded products in TV shows - is currently illegal in most EU member states, with only Austria having clear rules allowing this form of branding.
The issue has stirred great controversy, with European consumer groups repeatedly warning that allowing product placement will "destroy" the fine balance between citizens' rights and the financial needs of broadcasters.
But supporters of product placement argue that the European broadcasting industry is losing out on a lucrative market, limiting its competitiveness internationally.
For her part, Ms Hieronymi argues that "the competitive disadvantage of European productions against American productions could be removed," if MEPs and member states agree to the proposal.
In the US, product placement has been common since the 1970s.
Overhaul of current TV rules
The reform process came after the European Commission launched plans aimed at modernising the current 1989 Television Without Frontiers directive to bring it in line with new developments in audiovisual technology and advertising – renaming it the Audiovisual Media Services Directive.
The new broadcasting rules would also cover new technologies - such as the internet, mobile phones and video-on-demand - but only if they are TV-like services and therefore in competition with traditional television. YouTube or similar websites, for example, would not be included in this directive.
The Hieronymi report also sets an upper limit of 12 minutes per hour for commercials, while children's programmes and news programmes can only have commercial breaks every 30 minutes.
Child obesity worry
Several MEPs from across the political spectrum had also called on the EU to follow a recent UK ban on children's adverts for food high in salt, fat or sugar to counter the increasing trend towards child obesity across the bloc.
But the draft law only suggests a "special code of conduct" for children, aimed at avoiding junk food commercials targeting them.
The European Parliament adopted its first reading in December 2006 and the 27 EU media ministers will discuss the law when they meet on 24 May. The matter will then come before the full European Parliament after June.