Trade body the European VOD Coalition has submitted its response to the European Commission’s Consultation on the Digital Fairness Act, suggesting that any future changes to EU consumer law should be carefully targeted and evidence based, and should address genuine consumer harms while recognising the specific regulatory context in which VoD services operate; a competitive entertainment market, which incentivises content providers to continuously improve the value of their products by investing in quality and experience.

The Coalition notes that VoD services have become a powerful engine of growth within Europe’s audiovisual value chain. They are now among the largest investors in European production – in 2024, VoD services invested approximately €5.5 billion in original European content, helping to sustain jobs, stimulate local creative economies, and expand the reach of European stories, across the internal market and beyond.

Considering existing legislative requirements stemming from the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) as well as from the existing consumer law acquis, the Coalition urges for an approach that balances legitimate consumer protection objectives with the practical realities of running VoD businesses in Europe, which requires meeting consumer preferences and expectations.

In its Submission, the Coalition details three ‘Asksʼ, which address of concern:

• It recommends maintaining the current approach to ensure a seamless user experience and support the continued growth and innovation of the European audiovisual sector. We urge that any eventual intervention in this area does not duplicate existing rules and is proportionate and evidence-based and avoids introducing prescriptive rules.
• The Coalition urges the Commission to recognise that VoD services already operate within a well-regulated, transparent, and consumer-friendly framework, and as such any additional, one-size-fits-all regulatory intervention would be disproportionate. The Commission should therefore distinguish between practices found in other digital environments and the user-friendly recommendation systems characteristic of VoD platforms. Any further regulatory action in this area should adopt a risk-proportionate approach, focusing on promoting user choice and transparency rather than imposing blanket prohibitions that would disrupt legitimate and beneficial user experiences.
• The Coalition supports a risk-based, proportionate approach to regulation in this area. Broad restrictions could undermine discoverability, limit exposure to European content, and disrupt existing commitments to cultural diversity. For example, the Commission should avoid characterising all forms of personalised advertising or all implementations of recommender systems as inherently problematic. Well-implemented personalisation enhances user choice and convenience, rather than detracting from it. Any policy intervention should be carefully targeted, proportionate, and focused on the appropriate level of the value chain to avoid unintended consequences.

In conclusion, the Coalition suggests that VoD services are already well regulated, transparent, and user-oriented. The Coalition shares the Commission’s goal of ensuring a safe and trustworthy online environment. However, any future changes to EU consumer law should be carefully targeted and evidence based. “As set out above, they should address genuine consumer harms while recognising the specific regulatory context in which VoD services operate,” it adds.

“Fairness must operate in both directions: protecting consumers while also safeguarding the business models that underpin European audiovisual investment. Applying uniform obligations across fundamentally different digital sectors would be counterproductive and risk undermining Europe’s creative economy,” it contends.

“Policy initiatives should focus on simplification rather than duplication, ensuring coherence across the existing legal framework. Above all, the Commission’s approach should seek to balance consumer protection with the continued sustainability and competitiveness of Europe’s media and audiovisual sector,” it recommends.

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Categories: Articles, Broadcast, Business, Catch Up, Policy, Premium, Regulation, VOD

Tags: Digital Fairness Act, European Commission, European VOD Coalition, vod