Legality of Berlusconi's Television Monopoly Challenged

Legality of Berlusconi's Television Monopoly Challenged

NEW YORK and STRASBOURG, France, March 11, 2010/PRNewswire/ --

- Europe's Top Court Urged to Address Italy's Media Pluralism Gap

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's control over television broadcasting
in Italy goes against European democratic standards, the Open Society Justice
Initiative argued in a brief filed today with the European Court of Human
Rights. The Italian broadcaster bringing suit, Centro Europa 7 s.r.l., has
been denied access to the airwaves for almost a decade.

"This case highlights the failure of successive Italian governments to
deal with the twin problems of concentrated control and conflict of interest
in broadcasting," said James A. Goldston, executive director of the Open
Society Justice Initiative. "The Italian situation is unacceptable for a
democracy, and we are calling on the European Court to uphold the principles
of media pluralism."

In 1999, Italian authorities granted Centro Europa 7 a license to operate
a national television station but failed to offer it an actual operating
frequency until December 2008. The frequency should have been relinquished
under national anti-trust law by the Mediaset Group, Italy's dominant private
broadcasting company. Mediaset operates the country's top three private
television channels and is controlled by the Berlusconi family.

"Italy has the most concentrated television ownership in Europe," said
Goldston. "This lack of diversity can stifle debate and limit the public's
access to information and critical perspectives."

As head of government, Berlusconi also has indirect authority over
Italy's state-owned public service broadcaster, Radiotelevisione Italiana
(RAI). Together, Mediaset and RAI jointly control roughly 90 percent of
audience and advertising revenue shares nationally. Centro Europa 7 claims
the frequency it was finally granted in 2008 was squeezed out of RAI's
existing frequencies and is unsuitable for operating a national television
network across Italy.

In 2004, both the Council of Europe and the European Parliament condemned
the open conflict of interest between Mr. Berlusconi's media interests and
his political responsibilities when in government, yet the situation
persists. The current government has been repeatedly accused of partisan
interference with RAI's editorial choices.

The Justice Initiative intervened in this case as an independent third
party acting in the public interest.

The Open Society Justice Initiative (http://www.justiceinitiative.org/)
uses law to protect and empower people around the world. Through litigation,
advocacy, research, and technical assistance, the Justice Initiative promotes
human rights and builds legal capacity for open societies.

Source: Open Society Institute

Rachel Aicher, +1-212-548-0135 (w), +1-917-294-2641 (m), raicher@sorosny.org; or Luis Montero, +44-20-70311704 (w), +44-7798737516 (m), luis.montero@osf-eu.org, both of the Open Society Institute

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