On-demand audiovisual media services

Draft Act amending Act No 516/2008 on the Audiovisual Fund and on amendments to certain acts, as amended, and amending certain acts.

The aim of the draft Act is to transpose into the legal order of the Slovak Republic Article 13(2) and (3) of Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2010 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (Audiovisual Media Services Directive) (codified version) (OJ L 95, 15.4.2010), as amended.

In accordance with Article 13 of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive, the main objective of the draft Act is to introduce, in a proportionate and non-discriminatory manner, for providers of on-demand audiovisual media services that do not have their head office in the Slovak Republic but nevertheless provide services in its territory and whose services are targeted at Slovak customers, an obligation to pay a contribution to the Fund and also to invest directly in Slovak audiovisual production.
Under the present draft Act, it is proposed that the contribution to the Fund consist of two components:
• a contribution amounting to 0.5 % of the statutory basis for calculating the contribution (total revenue from the provision of the service in the territory of the Slovak Republic in the preceding calendar year and revenue from advertising displayed to viewers in the territory of the Slovak Republic in connection with the provision of the service in the territory of the Slovak Republic).
• a contribution in respect of unrealised direct investment equal to the difference between the direct investment that should have been made under the Act in the preceding calendar year and the direct investment that was actually made in the preceding calendar year.
Under the draft Act, a provider of on-demand audiovisual media services that is required to pay a contribution to the Fund is also required to make, during the calendar year, a direct investment amounting to 3 % of the statutory basis for calculating the amount of the direct investment. The draft Act defines which expenditure is considered eligible for the purposes of making a direct investment and also lays down percentage limits for claiming certain types of expenditure.
At the same time, the draft Act allows the direct investment obligation to be fulfilled, in whole or in part, by payment of a contribution in respect of unrealised direct investment. This means that if, for any reason, a provider of on-demand audiovisual media services does not wish to make a direct investment in the statutory amount during the given calendar year, it may fulfil that legal obligation, in whole or in part, by paying a contribution in respect of unrealised direct investment to the Fund.
Based on the present draft Act, neither the obligation to pay a contribution to the Fund nor the obligation to make a direct investment applies to a provider of on-demand audiovisual media services that generates low turnover from the provision of on-demand audiovisual media services or provides an on-demand audiovisual media service with a low audience. Compliance with the criteria for low turnover and low audience is assessed in accordance with the guidelines issued by the European Commission