NNI has called on the Minister for Communications, Mr Pat Rabbitte TD, to conduct a “full and reasoned review” of the digital media market in Ireland.

The media market continues to evolve and converge, and newspaper publishers now find themselves competing for readers and advertising revenue with a range of other media that includes public service and commercial broadcasters, as well as search engines and aggregators.

It is essential, therefore, that the principle of competing on a level playing field is fully and transparently applied so that no one player is afforded a more privileged position.

In calling for this review, NNI is asking in particular for a thorough examination of RTÉ’s commercial activity in the context of its public funding, whilst also addressing the urgent need for a clear distinction between the State broadcaster’s public service and commercial activity.

For example, RTÉ, with the benefit of a dual-funding model, generates its content with public funding but then uses that content for commercial gain on its multi-platforms, paying only the cost of transfer into other formats.

Meanwhile, newspaper publishers are investing millions in content generation but are struggling to identify effective charging models for digital content. The potential for newspapers to generate digital revenue remains very limited, particularly in the context of RTÉ offering free content on www.RTE.ie.

NNI has asked the Minister for Communications to examine any unfair commercial exploitation by RTÉ of the digital space in which it competes with newspapers and other media players who do not receive public funding for news and other content.

We will continue to press for a review of the digital media market and will update you as developments take place.