Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on:the Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council modifying Decision No 163/2001/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 January 2001 on the implementation of a training programme for professionals in the European audiovisual programme industry (Media-Training) (2001-2005)(COM(2003) 188 final — 2003/0064 (COD))the Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council modifying Council Decision 2000/821/EC of 20 December 2000 on the implementation of a programme to encourage the development, distribution and promotion of European audiovisual works (Media Plus — Development, Distribution and Promotion)(COM(2003) 191 final — 2003/0067 (COD))
Date: 2003-09-24
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: EU programme, European audiovisual area, audiovisual programme, cultural transmission, programmes industry, vocational training

C 10/8

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

14.1.2004

Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on:

— the ‘Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council modifying
Decision No 163/2001/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 January 2001
on the implementation of a training programme for professionals in the European audiovisual
programme industry (Media-Training) (2001-2005)’

(COM(2003) 188 final — 2003/0064 (COD))

— the ‘Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council modifying
Council Decision 2000/821/EC of 20 December 2000 on the implementation of a programme
to encourage the development, distribution and promotion of European audiovisual works
(Media Plus — Development, Distribution and Promotion)’

(COM(2003) 191 final — 2003/0067 (COD))

(2004/C 10/04)

On 5 May 2003 the Council decided to consult the European Economic and Social Committee, under
Articles 150(4) and 157(3) of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned
proposals.

The Section for Transport, Energy, Infrastructure and the Information Society, which was responsible for
preparing the Committee’s work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 4 September 2003. The
rapporteur was Mr Braghin.

At its 402nd plenary session on 24 and 25 September 2003 (meeting of 24 September), the European
Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 127 votes to one with one abstention.

1.

Introduction

industry through the provision of

1.1.
The Media-Training programme is designed to improve
the professional skills of people working in the European
further
audiovisual
vocational training. The aim is to equip these people with the
knowledge and skills they need to allow them to take full
advantage of the European and international dimension of the
market and of the use of new technologies.

The Media Plus programme is designed to boost the
1.2.
industry by
the European audiovisual
competitiveness of
means of measures to support the development of production
projects and companies and the distribution and promotion
of cinematographic works and audiovisual programmes.

1.3.
The two programmes are due to end at a time of major
change in the structure and workings of the EU, marked by
the intergovernmental conference, European
enlargement,
Parliament elections and the renewal of the European Com-
mission.

sector and avoid any disruption of these mechanisms, bearing
in mind that they further Community objectives which are laid
down in the Treaty.

1.5.
The Commission proposes to increase the overall
the Media-Training programme to EUR 57,40
budget of
million and that of the Media Plus programme to EUR 435,6
million.

2. General comments

2.1.
The Committee thinks that it would have been better
if the Commission had taken earlier action to create the
conditions and adopt the measures needed ahead of the
discussion and submission of the new multiannual programme
for the areas covered by Media-Training and Media Plus, rather
than simply prolonging the existing programmes for a year. In
this way it could have addressed the various needs and
new realities of the audiovisual sector and respond to the
constructive criticism the existing programmes have received.
For instance, the conception and structure of the programmes
need to be revised to meet
the challenges arising from
enlargement.

1.4.
It is therefore necessary to establish a legal basis
for prolonging the current Media-Training and Media Plus
programmes pending the adoption of successor programmes,
so as to ensure the continuity of Community support for the

2.2.
The Committee trusts that the current mid-term evalu-
ation will take account of the suggestions and proposals
contained in previous Committee opinions, as well as those
made in the present one.

14.1.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 10/9

The level of funding scheduled for 2006 is essentially
2.3.
the same as for the preceding five-year period — indeed, in
the case of the Media-Training programme it is actually lower.
Even if the sum to cater for the impact of enlargement is
added, the total figure is still not enough to meet the needs
of a larger number of potential users and the increased
opportunities for cooperation.

2.3.1.
the funds
The Committee therefore hopes that
scheduled for Media projects, especially in the training field,
will be increased in the EU general budget for 2006-2012 and
will be divided up more effectively in the light of the new
needs arising from the fact that the audiovisual sector is less
developed in the new Member States.

Alongside the support provided under the pro-
2.3.2.
gramme, other financing opportunities (e.g. private funding
mechanisms and EIB support) should be used more and geared
more effectively to supporting SMEs, particularly the many
micro businesses in the sector, with the Growth and audiovisu-
al: i2i audiovisual scheme acting as a model.

2.3.3.
A special effort should be made to identify mechan-
isms for providing tax concessions and creating a venture
capital market tailored to the specific features of the sector,
which is about to experience major innovations with the move
to digital.

3. Specific comments

3.1.
The Media desks, which provide the national interface
with programme beneficiaries, are crucial for achieving the
programme’s objectives. Care must be taken to ensure that the
Media desks being set up in the new Member States operate
effectively and offer users in those countries appropriate
information and services. This could have useful spin-off
as regards the search for partners for co-productions and
dissemination at European level.

A further way of promoting European films, both
3.2.
in Europe and elsewhere,
is by supporting European film,
documentary and cartoon festivals. Such support could be
usefully supplemented with the systematic provision of infor-
mation about these festivals, so as to facilitate the participation
of authors and small independent producers, and promotion
of their work at both EU and international level.

Festivals are an important means for promoting
3.2.1.
productions that are not exclusively commercial and often
have a valuable cultural content, providing insight into a
region’s history and traditions. With proper backing, they can
raise the profile of regional culture and audiovisual productions

that have hitherto been overlooked or sidelined by inter-
national distributors. This need is bound to increase with the
accession to the EU of countries whose culture and traditions
differ from those of the current Member States.

The Committee supports the idea of

3.3.
turning the
technical assistance office into an executive agency. This
should make it possible to manage funds in a more flexible and
transparent manner. The Committee urges the Commission to
press ahead with the study it has launched.

4. Conclusions

The Committee hopes that

4.1.
the current mid-term
evaluation will be followed by a wide debate and possibly
consultations with stakeholders, so as to prepare the future
Media programme as effectively as possible and to review the
allocation of resources as of now, if necessary.

4.2.
In the run-up to enlargement, the problem of funding
for the audiovisual industry cannot be solved simply by a
projection — based on current figures — for an enlarged
Union with around 70 million new citizens and a wider
development gap in the audiovisual sector. The Committee
asks the Commission to take this into account as it draws up
its proposals for the future EU budget, in terms of both the
scale of funding and its suitability to meet recipients’ needs.

4.3.
The Committee reiterates and reaffirms some strategic
points made in its opinion on the original proposals for the
Media-Training and Media Plus programmes, which it adopted
on 27 April 2000 (1). In particular, the Committee would ask
the Commission to take due account of the following points
in its evaluation exercise and when preparing the future Media
programme:

— ensure that the programme complements and is consist-
ent with other Community measures, by adopting a
common strategy and encouraging the audiovisual indus-
try to take part in such programmes as Culture 2000;

(1) EESC opinion on the Proposal for a Decision of the European
Parliament and of the Council on the implementation of a
training programme for professionals in the European audiovisual
programme industry (Media-Training) (2001-2005) and the Pro-
posal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the
Council on the implementation of a programme to encourage the
development, distribution and promotion of European audiovisual
works (Media Plus – Development, Distribution and Promotion)
(2001-2005), OJ C 168, 16.6.2000.

C 10/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

14.1.2004

— provide aid at those stages of the audiovisual chain where
intervention can bring greater added value (mainly at
the beginning and end of the production process), in
particular by facilitating access for SMEs by using more
flexible mechanisms and arrangements such as slate
funding (support for catalogues of projects);

— give priority to products which can be marketed commer-
cially over an extended period, and take action regarding
the length of production rights, as independent producers
are particularly penalised here;

— give priority to technological development and inno-
vation and transnational dissemination (in particular with
the new Member States);

— set up an information and monitoring system for the new
needs and developments of the audiovisual market;

— improve public access to the EU’s audiovisual heritage by

means of digitalisation and interconnection at European
level, particularly for training and educational purposes;

— conduct an appropriate and systematic evaluation of aid,
with a view to making optimum use of the financial
resources available and meeting the needs of the audiovis-
ual industry as effectively as possible;

— carry out pilot projects: little use has been made of these
hitherto, possibly because they have concentrated on
technological aspects. They should also focus on content.

4.4.
In the training field, the main obstacle is overly rigid
implementing regulations and, as already noted, inadequate
investment. As the Committee proposed in its earlier opinion,
incentives should also be provided for distance learning using
new technologies, and coordination should be promoted
between vocational training centres and universities, taking
care not to distribute aid too thinly.

Brussels, 24 September 2003.

The President

of the European Economic and Social Committee

Roger BRIESCH