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CANNES 2017 Industry

What is the future of cinema in the world of digital platforms?

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- CANNES 2017: The CNC brought together major stakeholders in the audiovisual sector to discuss the rules that need to be implemented in the new digital environment

What is the future of cinema in the world of digital platforms?

Moderated by Pascal Rogard, managing director of SACD, the panel discussion “What is the future of cinema in the world of digital platforms?”, organised by the CNC on Saturday, 20 May at the 70th Cannes Film Festival, tried to explain how groups from the television and audio-visual sector are organising to rethink what they are offering in a digital world. Mr. Rogard however regretted that Netflix did not join the debate, even though it had been invited.

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“The development of digital platforms is a well-established reality today and these new online services are growing very significantly,” reminded Frédérique Bredin, president of the CNC. “This development must be accompanied by a legislative framework. Our position is clear: New stakeholders should also be a part of creation in Europe. We have fought for three years to ensure that taxes are imposed on Netflix and YouTube, which has led to the setting up of a support fund for digital creation to the tune of 2 million euros. We think that the battle of cultural exception is now fought on YouTube, Facebook and Snapchat. The CNC is keeping a close eye on European regulation in this regard. It is essential that the online giants are taxed in the country of destination (where the content is consumed) and not in the country of origin,” she said. “The other big project that will unfold in Brussels in the upcoming weeks is with regard to the obligation to show European works. We want exposure to be as high as possible, up to 40%. Some big groups have accepted this rule, but not everyone. Netflix, for example, has opposed the German decision to compulsorily include a significant proportion of European works in their catalogue,” concluded Ms. Bredin.

Evelyne Gebhardt, vice-president of the European Parliament, recalled the Parliament’s commitment to support authors. “We are committed to ensuring that the country of destination rule is respected. Discussions with the Commission and Council are not always easy, but the Parliament will be alert to defend the cultural exception,” she stated.

The conference was also a chance to learn about the perspective of two private operators: SFR and Canal+. Michel Combes, managing director of SFR and Altice, underlined that the SFR platform launched 12 months ago is already a major player in terms of video-on-demand in France, with over one million subscribers and 1,200 films of which 40% are European. SFR is also committed to funding original works. “We think that the rules on media chronology need to evolve. We must bring the arrival of SVOD closer to Pay TV,” proposes Michel Combes. “We also insist on being able to advertise the theatre release of films, something that is currently prohibited in France. A television campaign is not as expensive as it used to be and can cost between €20,000 and €50,000, a cost that is manageable by a small distributer as well,” said Mr. Comes.

Maxime Saada, managing director of the Canal + group, on the other hand, highlighted the need to fight against piracy and for the equal treatment of existing operators and new entrants.

Delphine Ernotte-Cunci, president of France Télévisions, showcased the company’s work to offer a range of legal audio-visual products online. “We have made enormous progress in catch-up television. Almost all our TV shows and 20% of the films broadcast on our channels are available on our platform. We also offer a paid VOD service for the other films. This is not simply to make money; it is mainly to bring the French panorama into the European landscape,” highlighted Ms. Ernotte-Cunci. “I think, furthermore, that the French-speaking sector is a success story and that we have to invest to ensure that our products have a more significant presence in the French-speaking word,” she concluded.

Olivier Schrameck, president of CSA, reminded that the Directive on Audio-visual Media, currently being negotiated by the European Commission, is a major challenge for the future of the European audio-visual sector. “New operators have to contribute to the production of audio-visual works and their catalogue must consist of at least 40% local audio-visual works. We need clear rules for advertising between traditional operators and this dematerialised content,” said Mr. Schrameck. “We also need to keep a check on search engine algorithms to avoid any sort of manipulation or conditioning of offer,” he said to conclude.

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(Translated from French)

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