17/03/2014 - Norway’s six leading television production companies will join an organisation within the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO), the Norwegian employers’ organisation

Six major Norwegian TV production companies with an annual turnover of approximately €170,000 (NOK 1 billion) have decided to leave the Norwegian Film and TV Producers' Association to join a body within the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO), the Norwegian employers’ organisation.

“The companies have had a good collaboration with the Producers' Association, but have now expressed a need to enter a larger corporate organisation and focus more strongly on professionalising the industry,” read a joint statement from the companies, which supply most of the programming for the Norwegian screens.

“The decision also reflects a long-term assessment of where the companies best fit in. They still want good and stable conditions for Norwegian television production, both from the employer's and the employee's perspectives,” they concluded, adding, “The television industry is currently developing rapidly.” 

The six breakaway enterprises – the country’s largest – include Eyeworks Norge, Mastiff Entertainment, Monster, Nordisk Film TV, Rubicon TV and Strix Televisjon; according to Norway’s Aftenposten, they are likely to seek membership of the National Association of Media Enterprises, or Abelia (which incorporates IT, telecoms, R&D and education, among others).

Allegedly they are not satisfied with the support they have received from the Film and TV Producers' Association - which they consider “too small (130 members) and vulnerable” - during a couple of copyright disagreements and strikes, including the ten-day walk-out in May 2013 that brought the production of several TV series to a halt.