Moscow. August 3rd. INTERFAX.RU – Roskomnadzor (RKN) has developed a procedure for granting organizations the right to free broadcast on the Internet of TV channels of the first and second multiplexes, which will start working in March next year.
According to the corresponding draft order of the ILV, it will enter into force on March 1, 2022 and will be valid until March 1, 2028. The document was posted on the portal of draft regulatory legal acts for public discussion, which will last until August 27.
On July 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on the creation of a system for free online broadcasting of TV channels of two multiplexes, which gives RKN the right to choose one or more authorized organizations. The term of office of the chosen platform is 5 years, but they can be terminated ahead of schedule if violations in the work or non-compliance of the organization with the requirements are detected.
In accordance with the RKN draft, the Commission for the selection of an authorized organization sets a meeting date and sets requirements for software for online distribution of TV channels. Companies that want to get the authority to broadcast online send a statement to the department and the package of documents specified in the order. In case of successful completion of the check in the RKN, the application and documents are transferred to the commission. Based on the results of the meeting of the Commission, an order of the RKN on the authorized organization is being prepared, which is published on its website.
According to the law, the authorized organization must be a Russian legal entity with a foreign participation of no more than 20%. The technical requirements for the software will allow audiovisual services to use their own players. TV channels must provide authorized RKN organizations with access to their content, while the services do not have the right to change the content of the channels in any way or transfer it to third parties for broadcasting. The law will enter into force on August 1, with the exception of the binding regulations for authorized audiovisual services, which will come into force on October 1.
Showcase story
The bill (759960-7) was introduced to the State Duma in July 2019 by the then head of the IT committee Leonid Levin and his deputy Sergei Boyarsky; the current head of the committee, Alexander Khinshtein and Boyarsky, made amendments to the second reading. According to Khinshtein, by the second reading all the remarks of telecom operators in the person of the Media-Communication Union were removed, their representatives unanimously supported the bill.
In mid-December 2019, the holdings Gazprom-Media (GPM) and the National Media Group (NMG) notified the operators that the distribution of the air of their TV channels on the Internet from December 25, 2019 can be carried out only if a number of conditions are met, in particular , a ban on the use of on-air versions without a break in broadcasting for licensed products (blackouts), on charging subscribers for viewing them, etc. According to the holdings, the operators agreed to this. It was also assumed that from February 2020, the Internet broadcasting of the TV channels owned by the holdings, which entered the first and second multiplexes, should only take place on the Vitrina TV platform or stop. Later it became known that negotiations between copyright holders and operators continued.
Vitrina TV LLC belongs to the media holdings VGTRK, NMG, GPM and Channel One. Established as a single platform for legal online broadcasting of TV channels. The first multiplex includes Channel One, Russia 1, Match TV, NTV, Channel Five, Russia K, Russia 24, Karusel, OTR and TV Center. the second: Ren TV, Spas, STS, Domashny, TV-3, Friday, Zvezda, MIR, TNT and Muz TV. Following the transition from analogue to digital broadcasting in June 2019, they are mandatory and generally available.
