Netflix and Amazon Could Face Content Quotas In Europe (dailymail.co.uk)

jader3rd quotes an articles from The Daily Mail about a new EU proposal to be published next week: Netflix and Amazon could be forced to make French, German and even Estonian films and TV shows by the EU. The US companies could also be hit with taxes to raise funds to support the work of film-makers in Europe. The proposal is thought to be driven by the French, who are particularly fearful of their cinema and TV programmes being eclipsed by English language productions... One draft says the aims is to create 'a more level playing field in the promotion of European works by obliging on-demand services to reserve at least 20 percent share for European works in their catalogues and to ensure adequate prominence of such works'.
French may become the world's most-spoken language by 2050 (due to its popularity among the fast-growing population of Africa). But even so, should U.S.-based companies be facing "regional quotas" for the content they're offering?

Comments

Same thing in Canada

[innocent_white_lamb]

The Canadian government has "always" had a film-making pool that all cable television companies are required to put a percentage of their revenue into, which is then doled out to make Canadian movies and television shows (most of which nobody actually watches, of course.) The cable companies are also required to show a certain percentage of Canadian television shows, and radio stations must play a certain percentage of Canadian music.

None of this currently applies to outfits like Netflix, and the incumbent cable companies and movie and television producers are pushing for them to also have to put money into their fund. I suspect it won't be long before an attempt is made to actually do it -- it gets brought up regularly.

How about content providers pull out of Europa

[Foxhoundz]

I'm talking the whole shebang: Google, Netflix, Yahoo, Amazon Web Services, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Let's see how fast and to what degree of stability could the EU sustain its own content network without major US backing.

Re:How about content providers pull out of Europa

[Anonymous Coward]

Excellent idea. In fact the world should ban US content, i.e. exclude the USA from 96% of the worlds population.
And while you are at it, keep your military, your drones, your CIA meddling , your economic bullying and your other "US interests" at home too.

The EU is already a BIGGER economy than the USA, China is only a few years away from being the 2nd biggest economy.

Peak USA was the 1950s-1970s since then it has stagnated while the rest of the world has grown.
Turns out the USA needs the rest of the world more than the rest of the world needs the USA.

Re:How about content providers pull out of Europa

[meerling]

Depends on which of the 3 "first computer" you want to count. Two of which were by people in the UK.
On the other hand, making personal computers available to the masses, that was definitely from the US.

Of course, getting into a dick waving contest over who made what has pretty much nothing to do with the topic, which in case you've forgotten in your excitement to pull your dick out and start waving it around, is non-european media providers being forced provide and even pay for specific language programming.

Re:How about content providers pull out of Europa

[fox171171]

Re:How about content providers pull out of Europa

And Io, Ganymede, and Callisto while they are at it!

Barrier to entry

[Dunbal]

And what exactly is stopping French/German/Other EU companies from making their own national "Netflix" showing 100% local content? What do you mean no one wants to fucking pay for it? Surely there must be someone stupid enough to pay again for what they get through their local service anyway.

Re:Barrier to entry

[drinkypoo]

It is US bullying and copyright laws which are the problem.

They are problems, but how are they problems here?

You can not take just once program you are forced to take the 1 you want plus another 9 pieces of rubbish or you get nothing.

I fail to see the problem. Nothing is an acceptable return.

This places a financial barrier for other networks around the world.

It's not our fault that people around the world want some of our media so badly that we can drive a hard bargain. Maybe the rest of the world should get its shit together and become as good as we are at making media. The BBC had the most popular television show in the world until 2015, though, and they still make many of the most popular series on television. Why aren't they able to make a similar deal? The UK has the same kind of hard-on for strong IP law that we do here in the USA; in fact, the UK invented it! Remember, the first copyright law was at Alexandria, and it was about the right to copy, not the right to prevent copies. It's the English that turned that upside down, not us here in the US. But you want to blame us? Poppycock, cock.

Foreign media has a LOT to offer, in fact the US takes a LOT of it, americanises it (i.e. ruins it with canned laughter, poor writing,etc) for the local market.

We make our own version for two reasons. First, we don't want to read, sorry. By "we" I don't mean me, but it's still generally true, so I'm saying it. Second, we get control over the content. It doesn't support your media empire. It supports ours.

Media is basically the thing we have going for us in the world, IMO. It keeps the world sucking our teat. It's our best possible PR. It would be daft to change the game plan now.

Re:Barrier to entry

[hcs_$reboot]

That's not the point. French (and Europeans in general) want to watch American movies/series. Would it be from Netflix or a local provider. But the French government, for the sake of "Cultural exception", and in order to give jobs to many "shows Intermittents" (actors working temporarily on a show) want Netflix to make local movies and TV shows. That's already the case in France, and most of the "local sponsored content" (made by TVs) results usually in a crappy outcome (bad script, bad play...). That's the difference between "You'll get money if your movie is good" and "This is the money, take it and do what you want".

Re: Barrier to entry

[MisterSquid]

Why the fuck would Canadian or Australian tv shows be subtitled in English ? They speak the language better than Americans. They can also use a knife and fork correctly too.

1. Hearing impaired.
2. Visual channel for poor/no audio environments.
3. Screenshots in an educational (i.e. Fair Use) context.
4. Other uses not anticipated by easily offended linguistic nativists.

This is just the best!

[Archtech]

Wooooooooooooooooooooohoooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Estonian movies - just what I've been waiting for!

"even playing field"

[dnaumov]

You keep using that word, it does not mean what you think it does. In this case, it's actually the total opposite.

1) People can and do vote with their wallets. Nobody HAS to order Netflix. In any country.

2) If the stuff french filmmakers produce is not wanted by consumers, well that's too damn bad. Adapt or die.

Re: "even playing field"

[dnaumov]

I live in the EU and would very much like for EU bureaucrats to stop fucking up "the market" with their meddling. Calling something "making an even playing field" while in reality advancing the exact total opposite, a protectionist agenda, just takes the fucking cake. Thanks, but no thanks.

Re:"even playing field"

[ScentCone]

Same for netflix, if doesn't want to respect the markets rules can go elsewhere.

It's not a market when you make the merchant into a slave.

Well

[Anonymous Coward]

Since the studios insist the world is divided into regions and are fighting tooth and nail to prevent a free global market when it comes to content it is only fair they are forced to specially cater for those markets... nes't pa?

DONE! "...reserve at least 20per cent share..."

[tlambert]

DONE! "...reserve at least 20per cent share..."

Feel free to get off your asses and fill that reserved-but-currently-empty space with content.

XOXO
-- Netflix

Easily circumvented

[admiral snackbar]

What would prevent Amazon or Netflix from just approaching some YouTubers in these countries, offering them 100 euro for the worst and most crappy movies ever produced in French, German and all the other European languages, and putting these on their platform as the 'required local content quota fillers'. Hey, if 20% has to be European, nobody ever said it had to be the best European movies and shows... I would be more than willing to produce Dutch content for Netflix, consisting of hourlong diatribes against ridiculous European regulations designed to protect crappy content from competition. Hell, I'd probably do it for free. My German is just good enough to even produce a rant in German, which could potentially be submitted under comedy, considering my mediocre german vocabulary and pronunciation skills.

Warning

[Anonymous Coward]

For those of you who don't live in the UK, please be aware, 99% of everything in the Daily Mail is lies. This rises to 99.9% for stories about "Europe". Be ye warned.

Re:Warning

[stealth_finger]

For those of you who don't live in the UK, please be aware, 99% of everything in the Daily Mail is lies. This rises to 99.9% for stories about "Europe". Be ye warned.

The only thing true in the daily fail is the date.

Re:Chinese will take over

[fahrbot-bot]

GOD will punish the whole USA if Clinton wins. She serves the DEVIL. Yes, Lucifer himself is her master.

Wait. She works for Ted Cruz? Now I'm *really* confused.

Re:What could go wrong?

[ScentCone]

... or they could do a little work and find thousands and thousands of European classics?

Why should that be the responsibility of Netflix, or a cost burden carried by its customers? What's stopping an entrepreneur (it's even a French word!) in France from providing such a service for all of those French people just dying to pay to see those works? I get it, though. France makes it so miserable to try to start and run a business in that country that they'll never see anyone bother. So, let's just make Netflix an organ of the State and force them to do it! Socialists.

Stop fighting fate.

[pla]

Dying languages really need to quit pissing in the wind. Yes, the world will always have a place for French as a Dead language, right up there with Latin and Greek.

But really... Quit tilting at windmills, guys - We'll all either speak English or Mandarin a century from now. All the "also-rans" need to throw in the towel and pick a side.

Re: Another example of regulatory overreach

[Anonymous Coward]

Netflix should make a show about a bunch of French-Canadians talking about how fucking stupid socialist laws from France are that require content to be in French. It should be super low budget with three or four people sitting around a coffee shop table just taking about how France doesn't even know how small and crappy it's economy and world role are these days. As a backdrop there could be a bulletin board with a bunch of anti-EU comments in English, job advertisements in German and requests for long long term investors in Greek.

Re:Outdated premise

[aevan]

Don't. Give. Them. Ideas.

~Rest of Canada

Re: Another example of regulatory overreach

[lgw]

Add some gratuitously naked French chicks, and you've made a mainstream French film.