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EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

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Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#41

Post by coldtea »

comboy wrote: post #3

> So the move — which will probably draw loud and hair-raising screams from U.S. commentators — is, nonetheless, A Good Thing. I'm in EU. A Good Thing is letting me watch whatever the fuck I want. It's a real dystopia if the state decides which movies you should or shouldn't watch.

I'm also in EU.

An Even Better Thing is to not have whole generations conditioned from childhood (by a system that distributes predominantly Hollywood movies for them to watch), to believe that those are "whatever the fuck" they actually want as free agents to watch.

An Even Better Thing is to introduce people to multiple cinematic cultures (and multiple cultures in general), not just the global monoculture that pushes the cultural and political agendas of the country that makes it, and expresses its own preoccupation and worldview as if the rest 95% of the world doesn't matter.

Especially since there are tens of different cultures and perspectives within the EU to represent. Not just the global fast food movies that are cheap to purchase and project because EU distributors only pay for screening rights (and not for their production costs).

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#42

Post by rocqua »

This does not read as neutral reporting. Consider phrases like:

> cultural difference risks being steamrollered before it until nothing but tedious superhero tropes remain.

> And, frankly, if you’ve seen one superhero movie you’ve seen them all. So the move — which will probably draw loud and hair-raising screams from U.S. commentators — is, nonetheless, A Good Thing.

> rather than just doing the easy thing of fencing yet more Marvel superhero movies.

In fact, it seems so amateurish that I wondered if this was even real. Sadly, I see it reported by multiple sites.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#43

Post by eiieirurjdndjd »

phyller wrote: post #7

> The proposals will require that streaming services give over at least 30% of their on-demand catalogues to original productions made in each EU country where a service is provided (individual EU Member States could choose to set the content bar even higher, at 40%) 30% for each country seems really high to me. As usual for regulation, there will likely be high unintended consequences. While in the US and elsewhere…

Depends on exactly what the rule is. If the rule is something like, “any view where the customer is choosing a movie to watch, you have to show at least thirty percent local films,” Netflix would not need to trim the catalogue. They could just repeat the same ten Belgian films on every page. #ThanksEU

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#44

Post by gonvaled »

Bizarro wrote: post #37
FearNotDaniel wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given a choice of dystopias, I would also prefer to avoid the one where "the market" decides what I should or shouldn't watch. Nothing here is suggesting that you should be prevented from watching Jersey Shore, or the Kardashians, or whatever superhero action flick is in vogue this month, if that's your taste; but if it all came down to money then that's all any of us would get whether we like it or not.

Given a choice of dystopias, I would also prefer to avoid the one where "the market" decides what I should or shouldn't watch. You really want the state deciding what you watch?

I want the state telling companies that they need to operate within some constraints. We do this all the time, for all kind of industries.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#45

Post by coldtea »

davedx wrote: post #23
ethbro wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's hard to watch a movie that never gets produced. Let's not pretend there aren't strong tendencies towards centralization and homogenization in media. (That we could, most charitably, ascribe to efficiency and risk management) On the other side, yes, protectionism leads to a lot of otherwise unmarketable things being produced (looking at you, France). But balance doesn't seem like too much to ask. Because Hollywoo…

> But balance doesn't seem like too much to ask. Because Hollywood is doing fuck all for diversity. Six million Wakandans might disagree with you...

That's the token diversity movie that doesn't move one iota the cultural representation of how people in Africa feel, what they think, how they live and so on.

Not to mention that without the token gestures to american black rights references, it's a totally sterotypical superhero movie, with the same cliche manifested destiny for the hero, the same cliche choices, etc.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#46

Post by FearNotDaniel »

beaconstudios wrote: post #5
gonvaled wrote: post #2

Extremely good news: left unchecked, the "market" would let minority communities behind.

the market just matches providers with consumers. Netflix and other providers respond to demand - if they aren't showing the content you want, it's likely that (given any reasonable level of demand) someone else will be. Forcing providers to produce content with less demand is purely ideological because if the demand were high, they would already be producing content to match it. Which they do. What the EU is trying…

> if the demand were high

Culture is not just about satisfying demands, it's also about giving people the opportunity to stumble across things they weren't even looking for, and so enrich themselves in unexpected ways. As a teenager I had no particular desire to go looking for ancient harpsichord music, difficult jazz, sombre poetry, magnificent choral worship or even five-minute recordings of nothing but church bells ringing. But I found them just by twisting the radio dial late at night and discovering things that would never get airtime in a purely commercial setting. The fact that these things are paid for by a "tax" that many are still strongly opposed to, is something I would strongly support in a more modern media context.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#47

Post by jrockway »

phyller wrote: post #7

> The proposals will require that streaming services give over at least 30% of their on-demand catalogues to original productions made in each EU country where a service is provided (individual EU Member States could choose to set the content bar even higher, at 40%) 30% for each country seems really high to me. As usual for regulation, there will likely be high unintended consequences. While in the US and elsewhere…

Does the law mandate that the movies be good? Because you can just set up a webcam, chunk it into 2 hour pieces, and call it a movie.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#48

Post by ginko »

Bizarro wrote: post #37
FearNotDaniel wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given a choice of dystopias, I would also prefer to avoid the one where "the market" decides what I should or shouldn't watch. Nothing here is suggesting that you should be prevented from watching Jersey Shore, or the Kardashians, or whatever superhero action flick is in vogue this month, if that's your taste; but if it all came down to money then that's all any of us would get whether we like it or not.

Given a choice of dystopias, I would also prefer to avoid the one where "the market" decides what I should or shouldn't watch. You really want the state deciding what you watch?

Rather than some American corporation, yes.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#49

Post by wukerplank »

phyller wrote: post #7

> The proposals will require that streaming services give over at least 30% of their on-demand catalogues to original productions made in each EU country where a service is provided (individual EU Member States could choose to set the content bar even higher, at 40%) 30% for each country seems really high to me. As usual for regulation, there will likely be high unintended consequences. While in the US and elsewhere…

> 30% of movies in Indiana need to be created in Indiana

Seems like the media production is pretty centralized in the US. It's hard to compare with Europe, where most nations have different languages, their own TV stations (producing their own content) and their own funds to support productions of movies.

It would be a shame if these biotopes of media production would get dried out because of US monopolies.

At least for Netflix I know that they license movies/tv shows produced in my country and they actively recommend it to me.

Re: EU to move ahead with cultural quotas for streaming services

#50

Post by seszett »

Bizarro wrote: post #37
FearNotDaniel wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given a choice of dystopias, I would also prefer to avoid the one where "the market" decides what I should or shouldn't watch. Nothing here is suggesting that you should be prevented from watching Jersey Shore, or the Kardashians, or whatever superhero action flick is in vogue this month, if that's your taste; but if it all came down to money then that's all any of us would get whether we like it or not.

Given a choice of dystopias, I would also prefer to avoid the one where "the market" decides what I should or shouldn't watch. You really want the state deciding what you watch?

I'd prefer the state forcing companies to provide the widest possible range of choices to me, which is the case here.
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