Annexes to COM(2014)272 - European film in the digital era: Bridging cultural diversity and competitiveness - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2014)272 - European film in the digital era: Bridging cultural diversity and competitiveness. |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2014)272  |
| date | May 15, 2014 |
Concerning this issue, the results of the ongoing preparatory action on circulation of European films — concerning the combination of different release windows — will be shared with the sector in spring 2014[49]. The experiences and data of the funded projects can contribute to develop more innovative release strategies and business models.
The Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD)[50] which governs EU-wide coordination of national legislation on all audiovisual media, both traditional TV broadcasts and on-demand services, sets down a minimum set of common rules. It allows audiovisual media services to circulate freely within the EU, while protecting important policy objectives. The Green Paper preparing for a fully converged audiovisual world: growth creation and values[51] launched a public consultation on a broad range of questions related to the ongoing transformation of the audiovisual media landscape. It seeks feedback on whether the current AVMSD requirements provide the best way to promote the creation, distribution, availability and market appeal of European works in the digital single market.
2.3. Strengthening the creative environment
Europe needs to nurture talents and develop professional skills in the European film industry. This is imperative for the quality, diversity and originality of European films and are crucial assets for attracting audiences and strengthening competitiveness.
Cooperation among European film schools (on curricula or mobility) and creative partnerships between schools and businesses are to be encouraged. The objective should be to promote a better match of training and skills with the needs of industry (including entrepreneurial, ICT, advertising and marketing skills). It should also aim to bring a more international and global audience perspective to the creative part of the industry.
Creative cooperation should also be encouraged between the film sector and other sectors. This should be not only with neighbouring sectors (e.g. TV fiction, video games and cross media) or players in the digital environment (e.g. telecommunication operators or consumer electronics manufacturer), but also with other creative sectors or with education.
Beyond the Creative Europe programme, notably its cross-sectoral strand, that will contribute to this objective, the ERASMUS+ Programme will support cooperation and mobility in initial training, and knowledge partnerships and skills alliances between the film education sector and businesses.
2.4. Accessibility and audience development
Together with the creative input, the audience — whether mass or niche — must be at the heart of film policies at all stages, from development to exploitation. This requires — as in other cultural sectors — the development of strategies and tools that increase both the possibilities of access and the demand for European films, especially non-national films. Engaging with audiences in all phases of creation and distribution is crucial. Information on audience preferences and consumer behaviour could help to better identify and target factors that can contribute to the success of a film. The development phase could profit from such information.
There is also a need to promote the visibility and discoverability of European films, and to engage with audiences. Approaches have to be adapted to each project, but clearly the exchange of experience and the development of common tools (e.g. apps or web service, branding events and activities) can strengthen the efficiency of efforts to better identify and target European cinema’s audience.
Existence of audiovisual media services offering legal access to a diversity of European films at an acceptable price depends on a number of factors. Aggregation of rights and a more coordinated approach to mastering and management of linguistic versions could significantly cut the transaction and technical costs which may otherwise constitute entry barriers to VoD services. For example, for each film, a unique reference digital master of a sufficient quality to then derive all specific versions appropriate for different VoD services could be made available. This would avoid the need to fund as many acts of mastering as countries covered or VoD platforms concerned.
Film education also constitutes a major investment for tomorrow’s audiences. European films tend to use a complex visual and narrative grammar, the richness of which can only be fully appreciated with some analytical skills. The audience is interested in film education[52] and the film sector should invest in this process.
Activities of audience development are also central within the Creative Europe programme.
The ”Licences for Europe” stakeholder dialogue[53] has also led to important results that are relevant for the film sector and that will need to be followed up[54]. In particular, representatives of the audiovisual industry have issued a joint statement affirming their willingness to continue working towards the further development of cross-border portability of subscription based online services and, in the area of film heritage, film producers and authors and heritage institutions have agreed on a set of principles and procedures for facilitating the digitisation of, access to and increased interest of European citizens in European cinematographic heritage works. Discussions also touched upon the question of how to improve the availability of more or all language versions of films in a given country.
3. Conclusion
The European film industry needs a stimulating environment to reach its full cultural and economic potential. Creating this environment requires the mobilisation of those involved at all levels: in the sector itself and in the Member States, from the local to the national level. In full respect of the principle of subsidiarity, the European Union can also contribute to this process.
Beyond existing networks of public funds and regional partnerships e.g. among Nordic countries, the outline above illustrates the breadth of contributions that the EU can bring to the joint objective of meeting the challenges of cultural diversity and economic development in the film sector. However, it is clear that the main responsibilities and the most powerful tools lie with public authorities in the Member States and with the operators and stakeholders in the sector themselves.
In the face of rapid evolution in the sector, there is a need to promote a European debate and open a dialogue with all stakeholders — public authorities and private sector — about film policy in Europe. It should focus on the shared objectives of making the rich diversity of European films more accessible to the audience and making the film sector more competitive and more profitable.
To this end, the Commission intends to launch a European Film Forum, a process building on existing instruments, aiming at promoting the exchange of experience and practices, and the studying and sharing of knowledge on issues of common interest. The main focus of the Forum should be to debate public policies for the film sector. This process will seek to involve — on a voluntary basis — interested parties at the European level and will be conducted in full transparency to the benefit of the whole sector.
[1] EUR 2.1 billion of support is provided annually by European film funds (European Audiovisual Observatory, Public Funding for Film and Audiovisual Works in Europe - 2011).
[2] Recent films like ‘The Intouchables’ have attracted audiences across the world for their originality and have also become box office successes and returned a profit.
[3] COM(2012) 537 final.
[4] COM(2010) 245 final/2
[5] The number of feature films produced in the European Union increased from 1159 in 2008 to 1336 in 2011. In the same period, US and Canadian productions rose from 773 to 818 films (EAO Focus 2013).
[6] It is estimated that "The Intouchables" had a box office of 309.189.989 € worldwide with a production budget of approx. 7 million € while "The Artist" box office is estimated at 96.718.509 € worldwide for a production budget of approx. 11 million €.
[7] Video on demand.
[8] Period: 2008-2012. Data does not include Malta. Source: European Audiovisual Observatory.
[9] Period: 2008-2012. Source: European Audiovisual Observatory.
[10] Source: European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook 2012 vol.2 page 234.
[11] For example, in 2012, EU films were hardly present on the US market, achieving barely an 8 % share, whereas US films covered over 90 %. Source: European Audiovisual Observatory, database Focus, 2013.
[12] Source: European Audiovisual Observatory — study on ‘Theatrical export of European films in 2010’, covering the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, South Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, United States & Canada, Venezuela. Over the same period, US productions generated 66 % of their box office abroad.
[13] Source: European Audiovisual Observatory: Yearbook 2012 pages 150-155
[14] Unlike DVD, VoD is covered by the AVMSD and its provisions aiming to promote European works.
[15] In 2011, consumer spending on audiovisual content through digital and online platforms and services rose by 20.1 % to a total of EUR 1.2 billion, while European consumer spending on DVD fell by 10% for the seventh consecutive year to a total of EUR 9.4 billion. For the foreseeable future, a continuing growth is expected in digital and online forms of delivery for the European video sector. For example, total revenue generated by provision of VoD over proprietary networks (so called walled "garden services") prevail over distribution on the internet. In Europe such revenues are expected to grow from EUR 850 million in 2011 to EUR 1.5 billion in 2017. Spending on DVD/BD (Blue Ray Disc) is predicted to decline. Sources: European Audiovisual Observatory, Yearbook 2012; Screen Digest database 2013.
[16] IPTS Study: ‘Statistical, ecosystems and competitiveness analysis of the media and content industries — the film sector’, Sophie de Vinck, Sven Lindmark, 2012, point 3.4.3.
[17] Source: European Audiovisual Observatory. In Germany, iTunes offered 36 films out of a sample of 50 films composed of the top 25 European Film Awards winners (1988-2012) and the top 25 European blockbusters (1996-2012) while national VoD services offer a maximum of 29. In France the figures were 30-21 and in Italy 2-8.
[18] The survey covered 4 550 European consumers aged between 4 and 50, in 10 countries: A profile of current and future audiovisual consumers, Final Report, EAC/08/2012, p. 10.
[19] A profile of current and future audiovisual consumers, Final Report, EAC/08/2012, p. 55.
[20] A profile of current and future audiovisual consumers, Final Report, EAC/08/2012, p. 77.
[21] See European Audiovisual Observatory Yearbook 2012 — Vol. 2, p.222 (966 million in 2011). Attendance however decreased in some Member States like France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Bulgaria, Slovenia and Slovakia.
[22] A profile of current and future audiovisual consumers, Final Report, EAC/08/2012, p.60.
[23] This last figure also covers ‘free’ streaming or downloads, a majority of which is probably accessed through illegal platforms.
[24] Green Paper preparing for a fully converged audiovisual world: growth, creation and values referring to the Yearbook of the European Audiovisual Observatory, Volume II, page 171.
[25] In the UK a recent analysis suggest that linear television viewing time for generations 16-24 has decreased from 168 minutes/day in 2010 to 142 minutes/day in 2013 and are foreseen to further decrease to 119 minutes/day in 2020; for the generation 25-34 the viewing time has decreased from 200 minutes/day in 2010 to 183 minutes/day in 2013 and are foreseen to further decrease to 148 minutes/day in 2020. Enders Analysis, Where have all the young viewers gone? January 2014.
[26] In 2011 online viewing in UK amounted to 20.5 minutes per month. Data for France and Germany were 15 min and 22 mn respectively.
[27] See EAO Yearbook 2012 — Vol. 2, p.206.
[28] Motion Pictures Association of America: http://www.mpaa.org/Resources/3037b7a4-58a2-4109-8012-58fca3abdf1b.pdf, page 21.
[29] See the study ‘Rentabilité des investissements dans les films français’ O. Bomsel and C. Chamaret, 2008. This study reveals that of 162 films produced in France in 2005, only 15 recouped their production and distribution spending. http://crg.polytechnique.fr/fichiers/crg/perso/fichiers/chamaret_728_RentabContango2.pdf.
[30] Consumer level video market contracted by 1.1 % overall in the main 17 European countries in 2012 compared with 2011 while digital video and walled garden VoD (TV VoD) increased sales by 71 % and 26 %, respectively. Source International Video Federation, Yearbook 2013, pages17 and 18.
[31] Statistics covering the 100 programmes with the most audience in the ensemble of 6 MS (UK, DE, FR, IT, ES and PT) indicate that the TV series were the most popular genre in December 2012 with a cumulate audience of 62%. Source: lesaudiencestv.com; http://www.lesaudiencestv.com/categorie-12499478.html. European productions of series are gaining ground in national and international programming, e.g. Real Humans (Sweden/Denmark/Finland) will soon be adapted in the UK, and has already been exported to 53 territories. Source: Médiamétrie, Scripted Series Report 02. October 2013"
[32] Source: European Audiovisual Observatory, Public Funding for Film and Audiovisual Works in Europe, 2011.
[33] European Audiovosual Observatory: " The circulation of European co-productions and entirely national films in Europe 2001 to 2007" http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/cultureheritage/culture/film/paperEAO_en.pdf
[34] In the US, the average budget was USD 106.6 million in 2006, comprising USD 70.8 million in production costs and USD 35.9 million in marketing costs. Sources: Motion Picture Association of America, Theatrical Market Statistics 2007.
[35] System whereby films are released in different exploitation platforms successively. Such windows or schedules differ across Member States, but the standard sequence for a feature film, for example, would be cinema release, video/DVD/Blu Ray, VoD, pay-TV and finally free-to-air TV.
[36] See point I.2 above.
[37] It should be noted that many of the European films that are a success in their domestic markets tend also to become niche in some other countries.
[38] Services of intermediaries whose purpose is to negotiate with rights holders of different films in order to create a catalogue that is attractive for VoD platforms ; this activity may be supplemented by an active editorial component (curatorial activities)
[39] According to an estimate of the European Association of Film Archives (ACE).
[40] It should be noted in particular that the Communication from the Commission on state aid for films and other audiovisual works adopted on 15 November updated the state aid criteria used to assess Member States' support schemes; it covers state aid for a wider scope of activities, highlights the principle of subsidiarity in the area of cultural policy and the respect for internal market principles, introduces a higher maximum aid intensity for cross border productions and caters for the protection of and access to film heritage.
[41] As happens, for example, in Denmark, Spain, Sweden and Latvia. See the Third Implementation Report on the Film Heritage Recommendation,https://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/sites/digital-agenda/files/swd_2012_431_en.pdf.
[42] See "Study on the Role of Banks in the European Film Industry", Peacefulfish May 2009, http://ec.europa.eu/culture/media/media-content/documents/about/filmbanking.pdf
[43] COSME is the EU programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) running from 2014 to 2020
[44] Horizon 2020 is the European Union Research programme running from 2014 to 2020. LEIT forms part of the Horizon 2020: Leadership in Enabling and Industrial Technologies.
[45] Societal Challenge 6 in Horizon 2020
[46] http://ec.europa.eu/licences-for-europe-dialogue/en/content/about-site.
[47] COM(12)789 18/12/2012
[48] In particular on the sequence of releasing films via cinemas, pay-TV, home video sale, home video rental, free TV, and video on demand.
[49] C(2012)1890 27/3/2012
[50] Directive 2010/13/EU, OJ L 95, 15.4.2010, p. 1–24
[51] COM(2013) 231 final
[52] A profile of current and future audiovisual consumers, Final Report, EAC/08/2012, p. 72 f.
[53] http://ec.europa.eu/licences-for-europe-dialogue/en/content/about-site.
[54] See document « Ten pledges to bring more content online », http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/copyright/docs/licences-for-europe/131113_ten-pledges_en.pdf