Czech Republic: PMA supports calls for an increase to the licence fee.  

IN BRIEF: 

• The Czech government proposed amendments to the Public Broadcasting Bill to increase the licence fee that was not adjusted in more than 15 years.
• The vote on the proposed amendments to the bill were delayed, shedding uncertainty on the future funding of Czech TV and Czech Radio.
• The Syndicate of Journalists of the Czech Republic urged authorities to take a decision on the bill and ensure a sustainable funding and independence of the public broadcasters. 

IN FULL:

The future funding of Czech Television and Czech Radio remains uncertain as the approval of a bill to increase the licence fee drags on. The lack of certainty comes at a critical time when trusted and viable independent media is especially needed ahead of the country’s 2025 national elections.  

Concerns about programme cancellations, redundancies and even the merging of the two public broadcasters have been raised in the Czech press. The Syndicate of Journalists in Czech Republic, along with the European Federation of Journalists raised the alarm, and highlighted that a financially stable and independent public broadcaster were obligations required in the European Media Freedom Act which member states will have to implement.  

As PMA reported last year, the Czech government started the debate on the revision of the licence fee for public service media, which had not been adjusted for the more than 15 years. This included an increase to the number of licence fee payers by including citizens who own internet–enabled devices.  

In June, the government proposed to bring these changes to the Public Broadcasting Act. This proposal included a raise for Czech Television’s licence fee by 15 koruna to 150 koruna per month from January 2025 and the fee for Czech Radio by 10 koruna to 55 koruna per month, to be inflation indexed every three years . This much needed increase, would provide more sustainable long-term financing for both broadcasters, allowing them to fulfil their public service mission.  

The amendments to the Act also included changes to Czech Television and Czech Radio’s public service mission, as they would be mandated to “contribute to progress against disinformation while respecting freedom of speech”.  

According to several MPs and the main opposition to this bill amendment, the far-right party ANO, the public media should ensure plurality of information, not decide what is or is not disinformation. According to the vice-chairman of the subcommittee for media and freedom of speech Jan Lacina, both public media should rather contribute to media literacy. 

“The discussion of a major media amendment, already promised when the government was formed three years ago, has a long delay and the existence of public service media is threatened” – Syndicate of Journalists of the Czech Republic

The amendments stall 

These amendments to the Public Broadcasting Act met strong opposition from representatives of ANO who attempted to cancel the indexation of the licence fees and blocked all attempts to get the proposal through to a second reading in the lower chamber. As a result, a vote on the bill will be delayed, shedding uncertainty over the future financial sustainability of the two public broadcasters.  

Reacting to the lack of decision, the Syndicate of Journalists of the Czech Republic urged the passing of the law. “The discussion of a major media amendment, already promised when the government was formed three years ago, has a long delay and the existence of public service media is threatened,” they wrote in a statement. The Union expressed its concerns, particularly regarding the forthcoming parliamentary elections in less than a year’s time.   

The growing influence of the opposition, which has been opposed to the amendments to the Public Broadcasting Act, could threaten the preservation of democratic values within the public service media. 

Together with the European Federation of Journalists, the union called on the current political representation to “support all the tools of the democratic functioning of society, to which independent public service media undoubtedly belong.”.  

Analysis 

It is proven that viable, well-resourced and independent public media underpin democracy by providing trusted sources of impartial news and information, especially during times of elections and crises. But it is also well known that such funding uncertainty not only poses a long-term risk to the ability of PSM to fulfil this mission but critically, their ability to adapt to shocks and maintain financial and organisational independence. Funding freezes or reductions can lead to a loss of services which in the long-term, can impact the ability of PSM to provide value to audiences, which then leads to further cuts, and further weakening public value.   

The Public Media Alliance stands in support of Czech Radio and our member Czech Television. We urge MPs to support a viable and sustainable future for public media.