The Strasbourg-based Observatory, part of the Council of Europe, has been invited to take the first conference slot at this year’s Series Mania Forum in Lille. The Observatory team will open with a scene setting conversation event focusing in particular on production challenges in Europe. This presentation will take place on Tuesday 21 March from 10.00 to 10.45 am (in the Auditorium Louis Pasteur), during the Series Mania Forum (21-23 March). It will be open to all journalists and participants with a Series Mania accreditation.

During this opening event, Gilles Fontaine, Head of the Observatory’s Department for Market Information, will present the main figures from the Observatory’s new Key Trends report and discuss their significance for European series production with Alexandra Lebret, Managing Director of the European Producers’ Club and Guillaume Pommier, Co-Head of Distribution at Federation Entertainment.  Journalists can request a free press copy of Key Trends from [email protected]. 

This latest edition of the Key Trends report will be launched during the Observatory’s conversation panel. It will give a unique and accessible overview of the main trends in the European television, VOD and cinema industries. All attendees will receive a free copy of the new Key Trends report at the event. The conversation panel will be co-moderated by the Observatory’s Executive Director, Susanne Nikoltchev who stated that “this second year of the Observatory’s collaboration with Series Mania consolidates the partnership between the two organisations.” She added that “the Observatory is delighted to provide scene setting and contextual economic data on series production in Europe, both through the latest Key Trends report and an expert conversation panel.”

Francesco Capurro, Head of Series Mania Forum stated: “We welcome the Observatory’s unique overview of the key market trends in series production in Europe right at the start of our Forum and look forward to this second event co-organised with Series Mania.”

The Series Mania Forum brings together 3,500 international television industry leaders and talents in a three-day program of conferences, keynote addresses and pitching sessions. It is organized thanks to the support of the CNC, Hauts-de-France region and the Creative Europe - MEDIA Programme of the European Union.

Further information on Series Mania and accreditations can be found here: https://seriesmania.com/

Download "Prominence of European works and of services of general interest" 

How can Europe get more eyeball time for its films and series?

With more than 6,500 different films and series available on pay-per-view alone in Europe, it's no surprise that European works need a boost in order to even get noticed on the various streaming platforms. So how does European media law help the process?

This new report - Prominence of European works and of services of general interest - explores the ways in which European legislation as well as national approaches ensure prominence and visibility for European films and series available on demand. It also discusses measures to ensure the appropriate prominence of audiovisual media services of general interest.

This study explores:

• The legal aspects of the notions of “prominence” and “findability”,
• The European legislation which aims at ensuring prominence for European works: the AVMSD and the Council of Europe's Convention on Transfrontier Television,
• The monitoring of these prominence obligations and the role of National Regulatory Authorities,
• The new rules introduced by the revised AVMSD concerning prominence of services of general interest
• National approaches to ensuring prominence in nine different European countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Italy,  the UK, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia,
• Comparisons between these approaches, also with regards to VOD service providers and television service providers.
• Prominence of services of general interest.
   

How is Europe fighting for audiences for home grown films and TV series in the face of very stiff competition from the rest of the world? What are the best strategies to give prominence to services of general interest? Download our new report to find out!