Due to the delay of the Regulatory Body for Electronic Media in completing the competition, more than 10 regional television stations and around 20 radio stations that have met the conditions of the competition broadcast the program without a license. Therefore, they do not have the right to participate in media contests for project co-financing, nor in tenders and public procurement.
Namely, how to US according to colleagues from regional television stations, the broadcasters whose license was valid until December 17, 2023, still have not received a Decision on the granting of a broadcasting license from REM, although the competition was announced on June 2, 2023, and discussions with those who meet the conditions of the competition, i.e. whose applications are complete and submitted within the stipulated period, completed in December.
"The procedure is over, we held talks in December at REM, which, in accordance with the Law, is the last part of the competition, and since then no one from REM has contacted us, nor have we received a Decision." "Since December 17, when our license expired, we have been broadcasting the program practically illegally," says one of the colleagues who wished to remain anonymous.
Without a permit, I cannot participate in tenders and contests
Colleagues with whom UNS spoke say that when it comes to broadcasting programs on both television and radio, they work as before, that is, as if they had a permit.
However, as they add, this creates major problems for the media when participating in tenders or media competitions, which, according to the new Law on Public Information and Media, must be announced by March 1.
"We cannot participate in public procurements, tenders, we will not be able to participate in media competitions that will soon begin to be announced because we do not have formal permission." I don't know what we will live on, what we will pay our employees," says one of the colleagues who also wished to remain anonymous.
Colleagues from the media, whose permission has expired, confirm this information in turn. As they state, the biggest problem is that no one informs them of what is happening and why there is so much delay in the granting of permits.
"And when REM makes a decision, it has to be sent to Broadcasting Technology and Connections, who have to confirm it, and only then does REM make every single decision." That requires time, which we don't have," say colleagues.
They also ask the question of what is happening with the fees to REM and Broadcasting Technology.
"Should we pay them if we don't officially have a license to broadcast?" It will put us in a situation where we don't pay fees. What should we pay if we do not have an official permit? After all, soon we won't have the funds for that either," says a colleague.
The list of televisions that fulfill the conditions of the competition, published by REM, includes: TV Vranje, TV Palma plus (Jagodina), TV Most (Novi Sad), Sremska televizija (Shid), TV Puls (Grocka) for the zone Crveni čot, Vršac and Cer-Maljen, TV Santos (Zrenjanin), TV Bor, TV Belle amie (Niš) for the Jastrebac and Tupižnica zones, TV Kruševac, Kopernikus TV Raška, RTV Novi Pazar for the Ovčar-Tornik and Kopaonik, TV Kraljevo, TV Pirot.
REM: "Voting as soon as possible"
When asked by the UNS what is happening with the competition, why it was not fully implemented and on time, and when we can expect the decision of the REM, Višnja Aranđelović, a member of the Council of this regulatory body, answered for the UNS only that she "expects that the vote will be in as soon as possible".
REM President Olivera Zekić and REM Council member Milorad Vukašinović did not answer UNS' questions.
Zekić told UNS that she is in Ankara, at a meeting and that we should call her later. She did not answer calls after that. Vukašinović repeated his position that "he does not want to make statements to the Association of Journalists of Serbia".
The competition was announced back in June
As a reminder, on June 2, REM announced a Tender for the issuance of licenses for the provision of television broadcasting media services via terrestrial digital transmission for the distribution zones of Subotica-Sombor (two licenses), Vršac (3), Kikinda (1), Crveni čot (2), Rudnik – Crni vrh (2), Ovčar-Tornik (2), Tupižnica (3), Deli Jovan (2), Jastrebac (3), Kopaonik (3), Cer-Maljen (2), Besna Mare (2) .
Broadcasters had until August 1 to apply for the competition, and according to the Law on Electronic Media, REM had 15 days from then to publish the list of those who meet the conditions of the competition. However, REM published that list in the Official Gazette only on November 29.
After that, as confirmed by colleagues, in December, in accordance with the procedure, discussions with the broadcasters were held in REM, which was the last stage of the competition.
What is waiting for about 40 other regional television stations
More than 40 regional television stations have broadcast licenses that expire on March 7 this year.
Given that the competition for these licenses has not yet been announced, it is certain that at some point they will also be left without a license and, among other things, the opportunity to apply for media projects.
if he confirms that the procedure cannot be completed in less than a month and a half, how much is left until the licenses for these media expire, lawyer Stevan Pajović for UNS points out that REM has no obligation to announce another competition.
"As it is also stated in the Law on Electronic Media, the regulator should first analyze the state of technical possibilities, look at the needs of the market and the audience and, based on the analysis, create guidelines that go to public discussion." Only after that, the REM makes a decision on announcing a tender if the analysis shows that there is a need for it. Therefore, it is a procedure that would probably take more than six months, and even up to a year," says Pajović.
He points out "that it is up to the decision and policy of REM whether it will decide to call for tenders and grant permits first. In this way, these media could continue to work, because during this long procedure, part of them would certainly be shut down. In that case, REM would subsequently do the analysis and guidelines".
He reminds that the Law defined that this analysis should be done at least once every five years.
"The regulator, in cooperation with the body responsible for the protection of competition, the body responsible for electronic communications and the multiplex operator, conducts an analysis of the media and related markets at the national, regional and local level at least once every five years, with the aim of determining the number and type of media services in the free the reception for which new licenses are issued", is written in the Law on Electronic Media.
When asked if and when a competition will be announced for regional media whose license expires on March 7, we did not receive an answer from REM.
