The Minister of Culture and Communication, Aurélie Filippetti, received on Wednesday, July 10, 2013, the main actors of the press sector to detail with them the reform of press aid presented in council of ministers the same day.
The Minister reaffirmed the legitimacy of the State support to the press stating that the guarantee of the free dissemination of ideas and information is the foundation of the democratic functioning of our Republic.
The present system of aid deserved to be reformed because of its complexity and its lack of capacity to effectively accompany structural changes in the sector. The digital revolution is hitting the economic models of the press, transforming usage and extending free access to information and accelerating the decline in distributed volumes at a time when the expected growth drivers of online press development are struggling to emerge.
It is mainly based on the recommendations of the report of the group of experts led by Roch-Olivier Maistre on May 2, that Aurélie Filippetti has built this reform repositioning the support of the State on two axes: supporting innovation and guaranteeing an economically efficient distribution.
To this end, the minister announced the maintenance of the super-reduced VAT rate of 2.1% for the printed press, which marks the government’s support for an economically fragile sector that has been characterized since the post-war period, by the principle of solidarity financing between press families, from the distribution of the sale to the issue.
The Minister also affirmed the government’s commitment to lower the VAT rate for online press services by intensifying its exchanges with its partners and the European Commission so that the Commission canThe European Commission’s Green Paper on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection includes online press services in the list of products eligible for the reduced VAT rate when the VAT Directive reopens in September. Based on these exchanges, a formal government decision will be taken in 2014.
Aurélie Filippetti also presented to stakeholders the future lines of operation of the strategic fund, reoriented in favour of innovation. It will no longer distinguish between investments in print and online press, and its governance will be open to profiles from new technologies. Priority will be given to pooled or particularly innovative projects.
In a context of decreasing volumes distributed, the State wants to engage from now on a medium-term vision on the coexistence of distribution channels – direct mail, porting, number-selling especially in the perspective of 2015 which will see the end of the agreements binding the press, the Post and the State.
To anticipate this deadline, part of the State aid for postal transport will cease in 2014. The price increase for the press will be progressive, to allow an anticipation of the actors.
At the same time, portage assistance will be reformed in order to be economically more effective, so as to promote the multi-title porting of daily newspapers and magazines.
In addition to the exceptional assistance provided in 2013 to the broadcasters most affected by the winter distribution disruptions, support for newspaper dealers will be provided through a proactive plan to computerize the outlets. In addition, the Minister announced that she wanted to strengthen the powers of the Press Distribution Regulatory Authority -ARDP- to accelerate reforms in favour of the remuneration of retailers.
Aurélie Filippetti finally presented the social aspect of this reform by calling on professionals to conclude a code of good professional practice with regard to sellers-and to participate actively in the mediation mission aimed at improving the practices relating to the use of press photographs and the remuneration of photojournalists.