Powering European Growth

The European Video on Demand Coalition’s Priorities for Progress

Every day, millions of us across the European Union watch films and programmes at a time that suits us best. We watch at home and when we travel. We watch our own choice of content, mainstream or niche. We are entertained, educated, impassioned or comforted by what we choose. And the conversations about (the latest episode, the movie ending, the stranger-than-fiction documentary) connect us to friends, family, and colleagues.

This is all made possible by the Video on demand (VOD) sector.

The European VOD coalition represents the VOD sector, the most dynamic and fastest-growing sector of the audiovisual industry in Europe. Our members invest in European productions, cutting-edge content creation, and the technologies and infrastructure that power them.

OUR CONTRIBUTION TO EUROPEAN CULTURE AND ECONOMIC PROSPERITY

Europe’s VOD sector has transformed how audiences watch, create, and engage with diverse content. It delivers choice and premium quality content, ensures consumer protection and drives investment in European creativity.

Investment and opportunity for the creative sector
The VOD sector is one of the biggest investors in original and acquired film and TV content in numerous European markets. VOD’s growth brings a wave of opportunities to the creative sector in Europe. Talent has a broader platform to reach audiences across new markets, making it easy than ever for more voices, more stories, and fresh perspectives to cross borders.

High quality content & unrivaled choice
VOD providers give European consumers a rich diversity of high-quality films and TV series through convenient, user-friendly services. The choice is immense: from different cultures and in different languages and accessibility options. Travel is not a barrier for subscribers to commercial VOD services: they can enjoy their home subscription wherever they travel in the EU, thanks to the content portability offered by their providers.

Protecting consumers and the environment
Our industry is a highly regulated one, rooted in editorial responsibility and consumer protection. Our members are at the forefront of developing and implementing tools for children to watch safely, such as age verification mechanisms, PIN code access and age-rated content. We are also committed to sustainable productions and distribution activities through practices such as switching to cleaner energy sources and greening fleets.

About the VOD coalition

  • Founded in 2020 to represent the fastest-growing sector in Europe’s audiovisual industry.
  • Brings together VOD and digital entertainment companies of all sizes, from local players to global platforms.
  • Advocates for fair policies that stimulate innovation, creativity, competition, and investment, driving growth in the European VOD sector.

Our vision for a sustainable and competitive Europe
A thriving VOD sector will power Europe to become an even stronger force in creativity and innovation. Forward-thinking policy will make Europe a prime region for investment in the creative sector and in content, and will ensure consumers can choose diverse, multi-lingual, high quality content.
Here are six critical policy areas that will support the continued growth and success of the European VOD industry.

An end to burdensome and fragmented regulation.

The EU’s complex, fragmented regulatory regime makes it harder for the VOD sector to invest in content, to scale up and to expand.

For example, some countries have translated parts of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (the “AVMS Directive”) into obligatory and excessive investments in locally produced content, with a very complex system of quotas and constraints. The intended pay-off fails. Instead of helping the sector to grow, costs cripple investment in content and chase away new players, particularly smaller companies. Investment decisions in a country should always be based on consumer preference and viability, not government mandates.

Additionally, new proposed rules meant for other sectors often unintentionally impact VOD or use VOD to fund less competitive sectors.

The EU’s new push to simplify legislation is a chance to fix this.

Why It Matters

  • Unnecessary red tape weighs down the sector’s nimbleness and it blocks investment.
  • High compliance costs mean less funding for new European productions.
  • Overregulation limits the offering for consumers and can drive up costs.

Our ask

  • Enforce existing rules consistently across the EU instead of adding new ones. Focus on investment-stimulating initiatives such as production rebates and grants. Levies and investment obligations should only be mandated if they are justified by evidence, impact assessments, and proper consultation.
  • Keep policy future-proof, aligned with the fast evolution of VOD and with the services consumers expect.

One set of rules: keep the Country-of-Origin principle.

The EU’s country-of-origin principle in the AVMS Directive means that VOD providers in the EU are subject to just one set of rules – those of the country where they are based. This clarity allows them to offer services across borders without facing 27 different regulatory regimes.

Why it matters

  • Certainty and predictability fuels investment – in content, creativity, technology and infrastructure.
  • Lower bureaucracy costs mean more resources for investment.
  • Consumers in more countries get a bigger choice of VOD providers and of diverse, high-quality content.

Our ask

  • Maintain a strong country-of-origin principle to keep regulation simple and predictable.

Safeguard Investment and Contractual Freedom.

Territorial licensing gives rights-holders the contractual freedom to sell their rights to films, series and sports on a market-by-market basis, backed by justified geo-blocking, ensuring vital funding and return on investment. It means that consumers in different markets are offered content that meets their tastes and demands and there is more room for investment in local productions. That’s why audiovisual content was exempted from the EU's 2018 ban on geo-blocking.
In the face of calls to remove the exemption on geo-blocking for the audiovisual industry, the EU's creative industry stands united and stands firm to keep it.

Why it matters

  • Territorial licensing gives more opportunities for VOD providers to offer content that matches local demand and market conditions.
  • It helps smaller and national providers to compete against larger players.
  • It directly supports investment in European and national content. Without it, more films and TV series would struggle to get made.
  • Consumers get fairly priced access to a wide range of content that reflects their culture and interests.

Our Ask

  • Protect the audiovisual industry by ensuring audiovisual content continues to be exempt from the EU's geo-blocking ban.

Allow consumers to have choice and flexibility.

VOD services are built around consumer choice in a highly competitive market. Consumers subscribe, cancel or switch based on what matters most to them: the content. The expected “Digital Fairness Act” should recognise the content-based nature of VOD services and make sure that any new rules do not undermine providers’ ability to reinvest in content.

Why It Matters

  • Needless rules layered on top on existing ones could strangle growth and innovation in the VOD sector and limit funding of local productions.
  • Consumers could end up with a smaller content choice at a higher price.

Our Asks

  • Make existing rules work instead of adding unnecessary new ones.
  • Apply rules only where problems clearly exist
  • Any new measures should be proportionate and reflect the sector’s cost of financing content production, the unlimited and large-scale viewing opportunities given to consumers, and distribution costs.

Preserve an Open Internet by preventing “Network Fees”.

The open internet principle is that all internet traffic is treated equally. A strong, open, high-speed internet is vital for high-quality content distribution to a wide audience. 

The EU’s pro-competitive regulations have successfully achieved the connectivity, coverage and affordability of internet access that benefit European businesses and citizens.

Despite this, some large telecoms companies are pushing for a “network fee” that would force content providers, including the VOD sector, to pay extra for delivering content to consumers over the internet. Understandably, this proposal faces broad opposition from civil society and consumer organisations, creative organisations, regulars, tech companies and many more.

All those groups are concerned that new EU legislation, such as the proposed “Digital Networks Act,” could introduce network fees through the backdoor - for example, via a “dispute resolution mechanism”.

Why it matters

  • Network fees would load unjustified burdens on VOD providers, raising costs and reducing investment in European content.
  • Less investment in productions means fewer opportunities for European producers and creatives.
  • For consumers, networks fees could mean higher prices and less choice in streaming services.

Our Ask

  • Only regulate when there is proven market failure.
  • Make sure any new legislation is based on proper assessment and input from those directly affected. Engage directly with VOD stakeholders, recognising that the VOD sector is distinct from the other parts of the AV sector.
  • Keep an open internet by ensuring (disguised) “Network Fees” are not included in any upcoming legislation on connectivity or digital infrastructure.

Protect Intellectual Property Rights.

VOD services - alongside the whole entertainment industry - and their consumers continue to be threatened by online piracy. Online piracy in the EU remains high, with internet users accessing illegal content 10 times each month, according to the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) report ‘Online Copyright Infringement in the European Union: Films, Music, Publications, Software and TV, 2017-2023’.

We strongly believe that what is illegal offline should be illegal online, therefore the EU needs a strong legal framework to support our industry in the fight against illegal online piracy.

Why it matters

  • Piracy hurts investment in new content and damages the creative industry by diverting revenue away from legitimate services, making it harder to fund new productions.

Our Ask:

  • Ensure a robust European intellectual property framework and introduce binding rules to combat online piracy of live events.