Bruno Lasserre, President of the Autorité de la Concurrence, handed over to Frédéric Mitterrand, Minister of Culture and Communication, his proposals on the reform of the CSMP, the self-regulatory body for the distribution of the press born in the immediate post-war period.

As part of the action plan presented at the end of the States General of the written press, the President of the Republic entrusted to Bruno Lasserre a mission of reflection on the status, the missions, and the composition of a new body for regulating the impartial number sale, to enjoy a real independence, and capable of reconciling an effective distribution of the press with respect for pluralism.

In response to the request of the President of the Republic, Bruno Lasserre recommends in his report the creation of a new authority whose missions would no longer be limited to the level of press messaging would henceforth be up to him to ensure a much broader role as economic regulator for all stakeholders (couriers, depositories and broadcasters).

According to Bruno Lasserre, the composition of the current CSMP clearly bears the imprint of the era that saw it born. It proposes an in-depth renewal around two closely associatedcollèges. An impartial decision-making college composed mainly of persons independent of the interests of the sector would henceforth be backed by a college of professionals composed of several advisory expert committees, representing the profession and responsible for informing the decisions of the independent authority.

Bruno Lasserre finally presents the limits of a professional self-regulatory authority, and recommends the creation of an independent administrative authority. He considers that this new statute is the only one to provide «the absolute guarantee of independence that an effective regulatory mission and a dispute resolution mission require». Under these conditions, the authority will no longer be limited to the emergency management of the most critical situations. It will be able to anticipate problems and exercise genuine economic regulation, ensuring that clear and transparent rules of the game are observed.

See Bruno Lasserre’s proposals on www.etatsgenerauxdelapresseecrite.fr