Teutas - Diritto & Tecnologia

Pluralism and competition in the regulation of new media

10 – 12 November 2011

REFETTORIO – BADIA FIESOLANA

Via de’ Roccettini, 9 - San Domenico di Fiesole

FIRENZE

This conference forms part of the Mediadem Project. MEDIADEM (European Media Policies Revisited: Valuing & Reclaiming Free and Independent Media in Contemporary Democratic Systems) is a European research project on media policy-making processes in EU member states and candidate countries. Its purpose is to identify policy tools and instruments that can best support the development of free and independent media. MEDIADEM is funded by the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Programme and it is coordinated by the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy. (http://www.mediadem.eliamep.gr). The project started on April 1st, 2010 and will last for three years. The Department of Law of the European University Institute (www.eui.eu) is a partner in this project (coordinator Prof. Fabrizio Cafaggi) and will produce a comparative report on regulatory tools and policy instruments that either promote or constrain the development of free and independent media.

The Florence School of Regulation (FSR) is a centre of research, training and debate about regulation and competition policy in the Network Industries based at the European University Institute. Its objectives are to promote informed discussions on key policy issues, through workshops and seminars, to provide state-of-the-art training for European Commission, National Regulators and private companies, to produce analytical and empirical researches about regulated sectors. (http://fsr.eui.eu). The Communications & Media department at the FSR, established in partnership with IRG, is directed by Prof. Pier Luigi Parcu with the support of a high level Scientific Committee and qualified research fellows and project assistants.

The aim of the conference is to explore five key themes and their relationship: (i) the role of competition law in new media markets; (ii) the concept of pluralism and its protection in the new media; (iii) the changing business structures that are emerging as a result of digital convergence and the impact this has on competition and regulation; (iv) the nature and role of private regulation as an alternative or a complement to public regulation in order to develop independent media; (v) the consistency of the regulatory framework and the governance of the sector with the new media market.

The conference will consist of five sessions.

Session 1 assesses to what extent and in what ways constitutional rules concerning freedom of expression and freedom of information influence the adoption of particular regulatory patterns for the media sector and whether these rules allow for the development of private regulation (i.e. co-regulation and self-regulation).

Session 2 analyses different components of the link between antitrust rules and pluralism, which is not obvious in light of the more economics-based approach and therefore calls for an exploration of how antitrust and merger rules might be used to favor pluralism; conversely, in the field of public service broadcasting the EU Treaties provide for a mechanism to balance the national protection of pluralism with the EU’s interest in safeguarding markets, however this has led to the toleration of state aid to national broadcasters that allow them to enter new media markets – is this desirable?

Session 3 looks at the regulation of content. There are some new business models emerging, whether through contracts or vertical integration; in addition there are developments in the way news is produced and issues of copyright also emerge, not least as a result of the increase in user-generated content.  Here we build on session 1 to explore more closely the risks and opportunities that new business models create for competition and pluralism.

Session 4 considers two of the principal regulatory issues that arise in new media. First it reviews the well known debate on net neutrality and how the absence of neutrality might impact upon pluralism. Regulatory options to address net neutrality are considered. The second main issue is how far third parties may be entitled to access to content and on what legal basis. Competition law norms afford the most clear legal regime to regulate access to content, but how satisfactory is the application of these rules?

Session 5 focuses on the role of the national regulatory authorities in governing the convergence of the media. The EU has developed complex directives and rules on electronic communications and defined an administrative governance of the communication market through the NRAs (and BEREC, the coordinating body). Is this regulation consistent with media convergence? Does the EU need “convergent” authorities? Session 5 will evaluate the experiences and proposals of some NRA members.

Provisional program

Thursday 10^th November

• 13.30 – 14.00 Registration and Coffee

Welcome Addresses:

14:00 – 14:10 J. BORRELL FONTELLES (EUI)

14:10 – 14:15 F. CAFAGGI (EUI)

14.15 – 14.30 P.L. PARCU (FSR/EUI)

Session 1 The Media Constitutional Dimensions and Private Regulation

Chair and Introduction: L. JOSTEN (Commissioner Kroes’ Cabinet) tbc

14.30 – 14.50 Freedom of expression in ECJ and ECHR case-law

R.MASTROIANNI (University of Naples)

14:50 – 15:10 Public and private dimension in media regulation

T. PROSSER (University of Bristol)

15:10 – 15:30 Private regulation in media: role and effectiveness

D. TAMBINI (London School of Economics)

• 15:30 –15:50 Coffee break

Session 2 Competition and pluralism in Media

Chair and Introduction: M.NIEBEL (EU Commission) tbc

16:10 – 16:30 Competition law, pluralism and ITC sector

G. MONTI (EUI/ FSR)

16:30 – 16:50 Pluralism in new media

A. DE STREEL (University of Namur and FSR/EUI) and E. DEFREYNE (University of Namur)

16:50 – 17:10 The role of Public Service Broadcasting and its financing

P. LAROUCHE (Tilburg University)

17:10- 17:30 Regulatory tools for pluralism

M. POLO (Bocconi University)

Round Table I

17:30 – 18: 45 Views from stakeholders (on session 1 and 2 topics)

To introduce and moderate: S. MANNONI (AGCOM - IT)

EBU (European Broadcasting Union) – I. GUARDANS

News Corporation – F. MICHEL

Telecom Italia Media – R. BARATTA tbc

18:45 – 19:30 General Discussion

• 19:30 Cocktail and Dinner

Friday 11^th November

Session 3 Content production and Copyright

Chair: M. PATTERSON (Fordham University)

9:30 – 9: 50 The economics of New Media content production

M.GAMBARO (University of Milan and FSR/EUI)

9:50 – 10:10 User Generated Contents

P. VALCKE (KUL and FSR/EUI)

10:10 – 10:30 Pluralism and copyright

R. CASTRO (EUI) – A. RENDA (EUI/CEPS)

10:30 – 10:50 On-line contents and copyrights public-enforcement

M. CAPPELLO (AGCOM)

• 10.50 - 11.10 Coffee break

ROUND TABLE II

11:10 – 12:30 Views form the markets:

To introduce and moderate: V. AMENDOLA (AGCM - IT)

Endemol – M. BASSETTI tbc

MTV Italia – G. TAGLIAVIA tbc

Mediaset – C. LORENZON

EuroISPA - I. GENNA

Yahoo - tbc

Gruppo L’espresso – M. TEDESCHINI LALLI

12:30 – 13.00 General Discussion

• 1300 - 14.30 Lunch

Session 4 Regulation of Content Delivery and Access

Chair: G.MONTI (EUI)

14:30 – 14:50 Convergence of Broadcasting and Internet: new sources of market power

V. ZENO ZENCOVICH (University of Roma 3)

14:50 – 15:20 Market power and intermediaries

M. PATTERSON (Fordham University)

15:20 – 15:50 Net Neutrality and Audiovisual Media

F. CHIRICO (EU COMMISSION - DG COMP)

15:50 – 16:10 Competition Law and Access to Premium Content

P. IBANEZ (London School of Economics)

16:10 – 16:30 Impact of Content margin regulation on price and investments

H. WEEDS (University of Essex) tbc

• 16:30 – 16:50 Coffee break

ROUND TABLE III

16:50 – 18:10 Views from the markets:

To introduce and moderate: M. ARINO (OFCOM -UK)

BSkyB – D. WHEELDON

Google – T. LEUKO tbc

Orange France Telecom – L. ROSSI

18:10 – 19:50 General Discussion

• 19:00 Dinner

Saturday 12^th November

Session 5 Market and Institutional convergence in New Media

Chair: J-F. FURNEMONT (EPRA - CSA)

09:30 – 09:50 European Regulation of Audiovisual Media Service in the Digital Era

1. HEROLD (EU COMMISSION – DG INFSO)

09:50 – 10:10 Audio Visual Media Content regulation in the new Media

R. CRAUFURD SMITH (University of Edinburgh)

10:10 – 10:30 The Independence of Regulatory Authorities

A. OTTOW (University of Utrecht and FSR/EUI)

• 10:50 – 11:10 Coffee break

ROUND TABLE IV

10:50 – 12:30 Pluralism and competition in the regulation of new media:

Views from EU national regulators

To introduce and moderate: P.L. PARCU (FSR/EUI)

M. ARINO (OFCOM – UK)

J-F. FURNEMONT (CSA - BE)

H. HEGE (MABB – DE)

S. MANNONI (AGCOM – IT)

G. MÁTRAI (NMHH - HU)

12.30 – 13.00 General Discussion

CONFERENCE FINAL REMARKS

13.00 - 13.20 F. CAFAGGI (EUI) and P.L. PARCU (FSR/EUI)

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