As every year, NEM Dubrovnik highlighted the crucial role that public media services have in the CEE region. Jean Philip De Tender, Deputy Director General and Media Director of the EBU, asserted that “If you want a democracy to function properly, you need local public service media, and by extension, a good ecosystem between public and private.” He said, “It’s important that audiences have access to independent news, trusted news, quality news, which is the core business of public service media.” He mentioned that the US has a media ecosystem polarized between left and right. “In Europe, we have that unique concept of public service media, which is ensuring you get the news, but by extension, content which is reflecting your local identity,” he added.
Robert Šveb, General Director at Croatian Radiotelevision (HRT), commented that HRT is performing very well despite the competition. “We still keep about 30% of the market share. We reach over 70% of the total audience in Croatia, and HRT is still the biggest, not only media, but also cultural institution in Croatia,” he said. Šveb also added that apart from news and current affairs, HRT does lots of cultural content, drama, kids’ content, and sports. “This is how, with the variety of this content and the huge amount of content that we produce, we still keep managing to serve all groups of audiences. But the complexity is growing, and we will have to transform together with the audience in the future,” he pointed out.
Natalija Gorščak, President of the Management Board at RTV Slovenia, said that if the investment in public service media in the country goes down, this brings the whole media market down because there is a co-relation, co-dependence. “When we went down as a public service media, this also influenced investment from the commercial media and who made the profit, you know, global streamers,” she said and added that the state gave additional money to the global streamer who came and was shooting the series in Slovenia, but they don’t give RTV extra money for that. “Regarding the public service media and the legal framework, Europe doesn’t do enough because to get this law regarding the political involvement was a big challenge, but still, you know, there is no legal framework for the financing of the public service media,” she noted.
Baiba Zūzena, Chairwoman of the Board of Latvian Public Media, asserted that one of the roles of the public broadcaster is to educate the audience in terms of how we serve the content to them and educate their internal team. “I’m not speaking of oversimplifying, but just, you know, I very much agree with the idea that everything has to be explained the simplest way possible,” she explained.
Milen Mitev, Director General of Bulgarian National Radio, admitted that public media services need to change, but they are reluctant to change. “The culture of change is not really embedded into organizations like public service media, and we need to find different ways to circumvent that,” he said. “In BNR we are setting up brand new teams when we want to do something new and different because we cannot abandon our traditional audience,” he exemplified.
WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH STREAMERS AND TELCOS
The trends strongly suggest that many streamers may add linear channels, and operators will increasingly incorporate streamers into their platforms. Executives from Deutsche Telekom, Paramount Global, Tet Latvia, RTL Croatia, A1 International Business, and Warner Bros. Discovery discussed the main role of each and the synergy created around both business models.
Elena Petrova, Head of Group Content, Broadcasting and Media Solutions at A1 International Business, asserted that when streamers came on stage, it was a big shift in the way people started consuming content. “What streamers gave was actually this freedom and this convenience to watch whatever they want. So, then the telcos needed to change fast,” she recalled. She also remembered it took some time for telcos, but also for the streamers, to provide telcos the opportunity to start to sit at the same table and start discussing. “It was a tipping point when we realized that we both need each other in order to create bigger value for the customer,” she noted.
Uldis Tatarčuks, CEO at Tet Latvia, stated telcos and streamers are competing for the client's attention, but at the same time, they are participating in the evolution because the world is changing quite rapidly, and with new technologies, it will speed up and change even more. “We need each other. We need to provide traffic, and we need the content, and we also need traffic, so we can find the best way to generate partnerships, as we are doing,” he said.
Peter Wassong, Head of TV Content Europe at Deutsche Telekom AG, said telcos’ relationship with streamers was a kind of iterative process. “In the beginning, emerging streamers were coming to us, and we were a bit arrogant, saying no. After a couple of years, we were thinking maybe it’s a good idea to partner. And then streamers started to put conditions. Now we have at least the sub-partners, which are kind of in equilibrium,” he said.
Uldis Tatarčuks asked Stella Litou, CEO of RTL Croatia and Pro Plus Slovenia, and Kenechi Belusevic, VP Business Development and Distribution at Warner Bros. Discovery, if they see telcos as competitors. “Competition is a blessing,” said Litou. Belusevic mentioned that one of WBD's strategies is to do content that can travel, “to optimize what you have, and you want it to be relatable with audiences that are separated by geography,” she said. “It’s not only our content, we sometimes do co-production when it comes to documentaries that resonate. We go after third-party content as well that comes on our platform. Recently, we partnered in this particular region by licensing one of the best productions in the region, and it traveled. We’re a global brand, but where it makes sense, we take the content that is locally produced and we put it on our platform,” she explained.
EUROPE’S AUDIOVISUAL FUTURE
This panel discussion focused on the success—or lack thereof—of the AVMS Directive in stimulating growth and supporting European content production and audiovisual players, with a particular focus on streamers. The Audiovisual Media Services Directive is currently being evaluated by the European Commission, and a recommendation on whether it should be revised is expected before the end of 2026. While many in the audiovisual sector do not want to see the Directive reopened, there are calls from some stakeholders for its revision. The Commission has just launched a call for tenders for a study that will serve as the basis for the Commission’s report evaluating the impact of the Directive and its added value, potentially accompanied by proposals for its review. The study will also support the Commission’s report on the application of the AVMSD provisions concerning the promotion of European works.
Chris Marcich, CEO of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC), stated that the AVMS Directive’s goal of achieving 30% European content on streaming platforms is largely being met, marking a notable success. However, he pointed out that most investments are concentrated in just four or five major European markets, while smaller countries like Croatia benefit very little. Although platforms such as Netflix have made commendable efforts to comply with both the letter and spirit of the Directive, others claim they have no obligations in certain markets, despite being widely accessible there. This reveals significant loopholes in the Directive, particularly regarding cultural diversity and geographic equity. While the Directive has had a generally positive impact, Marcich emphasized that there is still considerable room for improvement. European film agencies have yet to decide whether to advocate for its revision. Marcich also highlighted a major loophole in the AVMS Directive: although it promotes cultural diversity across all EU member states, in practice, smaller countries like Croatia are largely excluded from the benefits. While platforms like Netflix have made efforts to acquire and showcase Croatian titles—something he appreciates—there has been little to no actual investment in Croatian content. The visibility of local works is important, but the Directive's intended impact is not being evenly distributed.
Vanda Rapti, EVP of Viaplay Select & Content Distribution at Viaplay Group, asserted that investment obligations have been aligned with Viaplay’s goals. “That quota is fulfillable because it is based on hours, and sometimes many can fulfill it without significant investment, which is something I would like to highlight. To answer your question, we have been comfortably fulfilling the 30% quota,” she said. Rapti added that Viaplay is a local streamer and broadcaster that has been investing in local content for four years, so they have a large catalogue of both local and other European shows. “It is not hard for us to fulfill from that perspective,” she noted. On the other hand, some other streamers in various markets have been able to meet the quota “simply by adding a lot of British or French content,” she said.
Branko Čakarmiš, Strategic Advisor at POP TV, received applause for his outspoken criticism of content quotas, calling them “stupid”—especially for those working in creative fields. He argued that Chief Content Officers, Program Directors, and other professionals should have the freedom to develop original ideas without being constrained by mandated quotas. Čakarmiš emphasized that the AVMS Directive has had little to no positive impact on smaller and mid-sized markets, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. He pointed out that while the industry is naturally shifting from broadcasting to streaming, the Directive is not aligned with this evolution. Instead, it is having a negative effect, he argued, by pushing major competitors to invest in European works, thereby driving up production costs for local players. He also criticized the use of public incentives for American productions, which he said absorb the best local talent and return via platforms or licensing deals—offering little real benefit to European or local industries.
Maria Valenzuela, Senior Media Executive, partially disagreed with Čakarmiš, arguing that when international players enter a market and make major investments, they contribute significantly to building industry infrastructure. “There’s so much money invested in production in a country. It gets spread across the industry’s specialization and generates wealth,” she noted. “From a government’s perspective, I understand the reasoning behind incentivizing investment in film production and returning some of the value being spent in the country because it creates a very solid industry,” she added. “It’s exciting to see such major investment and export of European culture and content. There is a vast amount of Spanish and European content flowing on platforms, allowing not only external cultural influence but also showcasing our own roots through great content and high-quality production.”
PIRACY AND PROFIT LOSS
Another key issue that players must consider—both now and in the future—is piracy and the damage it causes to the audiovisual industry. As most markets in Europe are unregulated, the effects of piracy in the region can be devastating. Siniša Đuranović, Member of the Management Board & CCO at Croatian Telecom, emphasized that as a market leader in Croatia, they feel the consequences of piracy acutely. “But it's not only our problem; it's a problem for the entire industry,” he stated. “The means to fight piracy in Croatia are very weak. The best solution would be for Europe to unite on this, but it hasn't. We’re full of recommendations and regulations, but in the end, it’s very fragmented,” he said. “As an industry, we want to raise our voice and call for a national approach. We began discussions with the government last year and expect an efficient system to block illegal content,” he added. “We need educational campaigns. We must invest in awareness, and we need to consider penalizing not only the criminals behind it but also those who benefit from illegal content—such as bars and restaurants.”
Adrian Ježina, President of the Management Board at Telemach Croatia, agreed that piracy is on the rise and that the problem is worsening. “It’s not solving itself, and obviously the legislation and actions currently in place are not sufficient to stop it,” he affirmed. He pointed out that piracy negatively impacts producers, intellectual property rights, distribution, and even government tax revenues, creating a society in which “fair market conditions don’t exist.” He added that piracy has a negative social and economic impact on society and that the fragmentation among technology and content providers is contributing to its growth.
Huub van Ballegooy, Senior Vice President of Creative Network at ITV Studios, said they invest significant effort with clients in building recognizable brands like "The Voice", "Love Island", and "Hell's Kitchen", through consistent format elements such as logos, graphics, and core DNA. “We protect these brands by supercharging them in a consistent way. We’re active in over 75 territories, and we add value to the value chain,” he said. “But when one of our brands is pirated, it takes value away from our clients,” he concluded.
By Romina Rodriguez, from Dubrovnik
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