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The Creation of Public Value in Small States: A Comparison of Media Regulation and Broadcasters' Strategies in Austria and Switzerland
Last modified: 2011-03-20
Abstract
Due to financial constraints, increasing competition, lacking political support and digitization, public service broadcasters across Europe are confronted with changing environments. This inevitably leads to fierce debates regarding their role in society, the scope of their mission and hence whether they are allowed to evolve from public service broadcasters to public service media. In short, their entitlement to serve citizens with a broad range of programming on all platforms is increasingly being contested. In member states of the European Union, a prior assessment of the impact of new services on the market is required. The potential consequences of a narrowly defined remit seem to be even more worrisome in small media systems. In most (Western) European small states, public service broadcasters traditionally play an important role in providing citizens with domestic programs, diverse content and independent information and it is at least questionable whether domestic commercial media can perform this task any better in the digital age.
However, while the consequences of the European Commission’s broadcasting communication as well as regulatory responses of bigger member states are well understood by now, only few studies focus on small states. Additionally, most scholarly work looks into regulatory requirements without taking into account the organizational strategies of public service broadcasters.
In the present paper, we thus examine how public value is created in Austria and Switzerland, looking at both regulation and broadcasters’ strategies. More specifically, we are on the one hand investigating whether and how broadcasting regulation was. On the other hand, we discuss the strategies of the Austrian and Swiss Broadcasting Corporations (ORF and SRG SSR) in order to serve their respective societies in a digitized media environment.
In order to generate cross-country evidence of public value creation, a so-called simple comparison of Austria and Switzerland was performed based on a qualitative analysis of documents. The two countries provide for interesting cases, as television markets in both countries are dominated by next-door giant neighbors (Germany, France, Italy) but only Austria is a member of the EU. The analyzed documents included legal documents, statements made during public consultations and strategy papers of the public broadcasters themselves.
Results indicate that while the concept of public value is not even discussed in Switzerland, it has become an important instrument of legitimizing the activities of ORF. Additionally, an agreement with the European Commission and lobbying efforts of newspaper publishers strongly constrain the ORF’s online activities. Publishers oppose the SRG’s new strategy of providing content on all platforms as well. However, as of yet more modest regulatory restrictions apply.
However, while the consequences of the European Commission’s broadcasting communication as well as regulatory responses of bigger member states are well understood by now, only few studies focus on small states. Additionally, most scholarly work looks into regulatory requirements without taking into account the organizational strategies of public service broadcasters.
In the present paper, we thus examine how public value is created in Austria and Switzerland, looking at both regulation and broadcasters’ strategies. More specifically, we are on the one hand investigating whether and how broadcasting regulation was. On the other hand, we discuss the strategies of the Austrian and Swiss Broadcasting Corporations (ORF and SRG SSR) in order to serve their respective societies in a digitized media environment.
In order to generate cross-country evidence of public value creation, a so-called simple comparison of Austria and Switzerland was performed based on a qualitative analysis of documents. The two countries provide for interesting cases, as television markets in both countries are dominated by next-door giant neighbors (Germany, France, Italy) but only Austria is a member of the EU. The analyzed documents included legal documents, statements made during public consultations and strategy papers of the public broadcasters themselves.
Results indicate that while the concept of public value is not even discussed in Switzerland, it has become an important instrument of legitimizing the activities of ORF. Additionally, an agreement with the European Commission and lobbying efforts of newspaper publishers strongly constrain the ORF’s online activities. Publishers oppose the SRG’s new strategy of providing content on all platforms as well. However, as of yet more modest regulatory restrictions apply.