EMFA and AVMSD - What's next?
The European cinema, television and streaming industries stand at an interesting crossroads, legally and economically speaking. We are approaching the end of 2024 and the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) has now been fully transposed into all EU27 national legislations. The new European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) entered into force on 7 May 2024. Most of the new rules will fully apply as of 8 August 2025. So what does this mean for the regulation of audiovisual media services in Europe? Where do these two laws interact? And what legal and economic consequences can we expect as a result of the new cohabitation of these two major pieces of legislation?
To find out, join the European Audiovisual Observatory, part of the Council of Europe, for the eleventh edition of its annual public Brussels conference: “EMFA and AVMSD: what’s next?”
When? Tuesday, December 3
Where? Representation of the Free State of Bavaria to the European Union, 77, rue Wiertz, 1000 Brussels
What time? The conference takes place from 13.00 – 15.00 with a networking buffet lunch from 12.00 to 13.00
Link to the programme here
Professor Mark Cole, of the University of Luxembourg, Institute of European Media Law (EMR) will unpack the new EMFA for us in his keynote. And then an expert panel will look at the interplay between the EMFA and the AVMSD in the following key areas:
- The challenges of safeguarding media pluralism and independence of media service providers
- Fairness for market players and increased protection for viewers: are the current rules future-proof?
The Observatory’s Executive Director, Susanne Nikoltchev, stated that “the new EMFA is a game changer, both legally and economically, for the audiovisual landscape." She added that the conference would allow participants to get a useful handle on the interplay between this new legislation and the already existing AVMSD, now fully transposed into national legislation in the EU.