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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

#151

Everyone here actively despises the local film industry. We do not need to inflict Dutch television on the world. Thats torture. Good shows should earn their ratings, not be force fed- if your culture is so great France and Germany you wouldn't need these subsidies. Netflix is not a public broadcaster.

> Everyone here actively despises the local film industry. We do not need to inflict Dutch television on the world. Thats torture. I don't understand. Do the Dutch hate their own programmes? Why would they bother making shows they don't want to watch? > if your culture is so great France and Germany you wouldn't need these subsidies. I'm not sure they need them, just that it helps promote it. These shows might not ne…

> I don't understand. Do the Dutch hate their own programmes? Why would they bother making shows they don't want to watch?

Same reason any culture creates art, by choice. Not all art has to be accepted (or forced) and many times the value to its creator and/or a small subset of patrons is enough to justify it.

>> if your culture is so great France and Germany you wouldn't need these subsidies. Netflix is not a public broadcaster.

> I'm not sure they need them, just that it helps promote it

I added more context to the original quote. I assume the original poster didn't mean "subsidies" as financial assistance, but instead misused the word to mean restrictions on foreign content. I think most agree grants for the arts have value due to some forms of art being unsustainable on their own.

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

#152
post #111

Protectionism is bad in all its forms. Content providers want to capture the local market and should include local productions -- if that's what the subscribers want. Mandating a quota is backwards. If a state wants to sponsor work and make it available at low costs I'm sure content services would jump to provide it. All this does is either increase cost or reduce available selection in the affected markets. If the s…

> Protectionism is bad in all its forms. Yet it was the basis for economic growth of every developed economy. From the US, Germany, Japan to China. The only countries that have no protectionism and free markets are poor African ones that find themselves under the IMFs thumb. All of which have stagnating economies.

Can you back up your claims with any evidence?

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

#153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So it is more of a European, rather than Europeanunionean, way of thinking If one appears to beget the other they might as well be the same. I sympathize with countries desiring sovereignty on these issues that should remain at the country level.

You can't have your cake and eat it too: either you want sovereignty, or you want to be part of a bigger system in which you cannot always get your way. This happens at EU level, at country level, at regional level, at city level, and a district level. It is part of how societies work. But more specifically, what I was arguing is that these kinds of decisions are not why people want to leave (sannee's point above). P…

> You can't have your cake and eat it too: either you want sovereignty, or you want to be part of a bigger system in which you cannot always get your way.

I'm not sure that's true. I think the EU, as a non-political economic union gives you that cake. It's the political side keeping you from eating it. I think there are many financial policies that can be properly disentangled from political beliefs and the ones that can't should be deferred.

TV rules are a microcosm of the real issue: a political union making political decisions when some of its less influential members would prefer such not-purely-economical decisions be delegated. (at least this is what it looks like from the outside)

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

#154
post #41
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 push…

My grandparents were all in for watching Danish movies, so I watched too many of those growing up.

It didn't convince me of another world view, except that Danish movies sucks and Americans are great.

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

#155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

India managed to overcome this allegedly insurmountable American influence and have "the world's largest film industry in terms of film production"[1]. European countries would just rather take the easier route and bully companies into trying to force the matter instead of creating conditions that would allow it to happen naturally. 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bollywood

> India managed to overcome this allegedly insurmountable American influence and have "the world's largest film industry in terms of film production" India never had that American influence problem because it's a much more insular culture, and had many illiterate people in the near past, who wanted to just relax with a movie that shows people in their likeness and plays some nice local songs. Their average popular mo…

> India never had that American influence problem because it's a much more insular culture, and had many illiterate people in the near past, who wanted to just relax with a movie that shows people in their likeness and plays some nice local songs

This is a pretty ridiculous and off-the-mark assertion about both the nature of Bollywood cinema and its popularity within India.

> In Europe we don't consider companies "people".

Also completely wrong. Corporations retain the rights of the persons that comprise them, both in the US and in Europe. In some European countries, this is literally written into the constitution.

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

#156
Your superior cultures results in terrorist cells and content. Your superior culture should pay it's own flipping bill (to handle it's miscreant externalities).

Here's a flipping mirror. You're welcome

What is the word for "To look down one's nose And expect others to solve one's own country's problems at others' expense."

Here are some topics That you're preferred, local, must-carry content MUST address in order to be considered for publication in this journal:

- Ethnocentrism

- Nationalist bigotry

- Editorial discretion

"You know, we're going to make these successful Americans do our bidding; so that we're not forced to voluntarily pay for their inferior American content"

You can start your own flipping platform.

You can add a tax in order to subsidize a privately or state-owned competitor for these services.

But you will not flipping tell these companies what content to carry.

And while you're at it, add a tax to pay for filtering content uploaded by the outcast miscreants your region of the world produces.

Freedom of Speech.

Please read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

> Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

> Article 19. Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Personally, I do enjoy films from all over the world.

You may not lawfully compel these companies to control their speech.

You may levy a tax to fund the arts.

Forcing local investment in that way is not a good way to build healthy relationships.

"They're only finding this project because they have to"

You may invest in building competing platforms.

You do not own these companies. These are not state-owned or state-operated businesses. They were built and financed by non-state actors.

Would you go to a scholarly journal and tell them that they must publish 40% local articles? You would not, because you would then be infringing their right to freedom of speech.

You would not, because later on, the authors would question whether their success was unfairly subsidized; whether they succeeded due to merit or nationality.

"You must carry" Get the heck out of here.

"This is our country, So you must put my kid's painting on your wall." Go treat yourself.

What's next? Are you going to strongarm Ikea -- which sells great products -- into carrying a product mix with 30-40% goods from other local manufacturers?

Actual competition results in superior goods that consumers prefer.

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

#157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure it's entirely wrong when you have a heavyweight like the US/Hollywood that dominates the global entertainment industry. I don't know about you but the content coming out of Hollywood is depressingly dumb. This may be a hamfisted attempt at addressing that but the problem remains. The loudest voice in the room is US/Hollywood. Entertainment is often our "first contact" with ideas beyond our normal areas o…

But will you leave others the choice to watch what they want?

Yes. I think the local content should be available and accessible. But beyond that, it's up to the studios to fight for viewers.

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

#158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Protectionism is bad in all its forms. I read a book once that made an interesting point: 1. English-language films make more money than French-language films because there are more English speakers than French speakers. 2. Because of this, an English-language film can profitably have a bigger budget, allowing better production values. 3. Once a film has been produced, the rights will get sold in every foreign market…

> This makes it extremely hard for French language films to compete. This assumes some zero-sum level of media the public can support and that money is enough to control it. I don't believe in either of those things wrt the arts and patronage can come in many forms, but restricting amounts of art in any direction by fiat is wrong.

There is a zero sum fight over finite attention and leisure time, and the ability to monopolize distribution channels (as with any other market, there can be monopolies).

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

#159
post #42

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 fencin…

> So the move — which will probably draw loud and hair-raising screams from U.S. commentators — is, nonetheless, A Good Thing.

Wow. I’m suprised TechCrunch actually published this. Has their quality dropped that dramatically?

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

#160
post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 push…

We're working on a project to let people discover multiple cultures/areas besides "bestsellers", but with books. May I ask you a few quick questions on how you see that happening? There's no email in your profile, mine is marius@booxia.com Appreciate your thoughts!

Can I sign up somewhere for news about that project? I am always interested in Good Book recommendations.
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