Amendments to Poland’s Cinema Law To Boost Funding for Cinema Industry

21-09-2020

Amendments to Poland’s Cinema Law To Boost Funding for Cinema Industry

By Katarzyna Grynienko

WARSAW: A draft amendment to the Polish cinema law would require TV broadcasters and VOD service providers registered in other EU countries to pay 1.5 percent on revenues generated in Poland to the Polish Film Institute. The levy already introduced as a temporary measure in July 2020 as part of the government’s COVID anti-crisis shield would become a permanent law.

The draft amendment to the Cinematography Act proposed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage would affect providers such as Netflix and HBO Go, requiring them to pay 1.5 percent of Polish revenues to the Polish Film Institute. Companies that are micro-entrepreneurs (up to 10 employees) and whose total audience market share does not exceed 1% will be exempt from the levy.

TV broadcasters registered in Poland and operators of digital TV platforms and cable networks must pay a levy on revenues to the Polish Film Institute. This levy on VoD operators is estimated to bring the PISF about 3.3 m EUR / 15 m PLN in 2020, and a minimum of 4.4 m EUR / 20 m PLN in subsequent years.

The draft also increases minimum European content levels and introduces sanctions on violations of requirements on provisions and labelling of content for the disabled.

Published in Poland