Congress today votes on the Audiovisual Communications Act, which promotes independent films and films directed by women
For the first time, audiovisual giants such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ or HBO will be legally obliged to finance the production of national films and series, just as traditional television channels already do. The new audiovisual law will force the major streaming platforms to financially support series and films in Spanish and in the co-official languages of the state (Basque, Catalan and Galician), as well as independent cinema and also films made by women.
The rule, which comes after a year of controversy and tug-of-war with Catalan independence supporters and Basque nationalists, will be put to a vote today in the Committee on Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation. Everything points to it continuing.
The regulation obliges the major platforms to spend 5% of the revenues generated in Spain on financing European audiovisual works (after transposing the EU regulations containing the new law), but reserves a quota for films and series in Spanish and in the co-official languages of the state. At least 15 million euros will be allocated for this type of production, as well as the creation of a public fund to ensure the dubbing in Catalan of series on streaming platforms, as agreed with the ERC to save the general budgets of the condition.
The draft has the support of the two governing parties and investment partners such as the PNV have also already announced their support for the draft, as they have started dubbing the content of the TVE children’s channels into Basque and the broadcasts of ETB in Navarra not become dependent on the state, as the original project envisioned, but on the Comunidad Foral Navarra.
The text also comes to promote independent cinema (although in this matter there are controversies to define the definition of ‘independent’, as the Platform of Independent Producers claimed) and those made or directed by women. There is also a small fee to support animated films and documentaries.
Spanning more than 130 pages, the regulation regulates everything from the protection schemes for minors on television to bans the use of their data for commercial purposes and will, for the first time, also monitor YouTubers, who must register with a registry official. United We Can, ERC, Bildu, Junts, PDeCAT, Más País, Compromís, BNG, CUP and Nueva Canarias have tabled an amendment so that bullfighting shows are considered “harmful content” to the “physical, mental and moral” development of minors. And the PP has proposed another amendment to ban toy ads that promote gender stereotypes, something already considered in the self-regulatory code agreed by the Ministry of Consumption, the Spanish Association of Toy Manufacturers and Autocontrol, which will come into effect in December.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
