Unpacking the 'media plurality test' under the EMFA

• Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies
• CMPF: Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom Programme

This session will explore the provisions of Article 22 of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), which sets out a framework to assess the impact of media market concentrations on media pluralism and editorial independence.

This EMFA Talk will focus on the assessment of media market concentrations, the so-called 'media plurality test', as outlined in Article 22 of the European Media Freedom Act. This provision requires Member States to establish substantive and procedural rules ensuring that media mergers and acquisitions do not threaten media plurality or editorial independence. By bringing together legal and economic experts, this event will unpack the key criteria that regulatory bodies must consider. It will also highlight the challenges and inconsistencies in national approaches to media market concentration assessment.

This EMFA discussion will feature Tanja Kerševan, RSCAS Research Fellow and Assistant Professor at the University of Ljubljana, and Antonio Manganelli, Professor of Competition Policy and Regulation at the University of Siena, with commentary from Pier Luigi Parcu, Director of the Centre for a Digital Society and the Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom, Robert Schuman Centre, Maria Luisa Stasi, Head of Law and Policy for digital markets at ARTICLE 19, and Heritiana Ranaivoson, Research Professor at imec-SMIT-VUB in the Media Economic & Policy Unit. Roberta Carlini, Assistant Part Time Professor at the EUI, will moderate the conversation, ensuring a comprehensive and solution-oriented debate.