EC Ministers to Push for More Domestic TV
Threatening a fresh trade spat with the United States, European foreign ministers today agreed to push their television stations to air a majority of home-grown--not foreign--entertainment programs.
The United States has argued that the measure will hurt the American film and television industry’s earnings abroad and suggested that it may violate international trade rules.
Despite strong U.S. lobbying in recent months, the foreign ministers of the European Community approved a plan that would remove barriers to TV broadcasting in the 12-nation trading bloc.
There was no immediate reaction from U.S. officials.
The plan, Television Without Frontiers, is part of the community’s move to create a single market of 320 million consumers in late 1992.
The TV measure set out the conditions under which broadcasters in Europe would be allowed to transmit channels throughout the trading bloc. In doing so, it said governments must ensure that a majority of transmission time be reserved--”where practicable and by appropriate means”--for European-made programs.
Excluded from the provision were news, sports and games programs as well as ads.
British Foreign Secretary John Major said there are assurances that the measure will not be regarded as applying legally binding quotas.
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