EUROPEAN COMMISSION

EUROSTAT
Directorate D: Government Finance Statistics (GFS)
Unit D-1: Excessive deficit procedure and methodology

Luxembourg, 24 April 2015

Questionnaire on public TV and/or radio broadcasting

(under ESA 2010)
In the last FAWG in December 2014, Eurostat presented a document "Public TV and radio
broadcasting follow-up" (Item C.2). As ESA 2010 does not provide any explicit guidelines on
how to record payments for public broadcasting services (TV and/or radio payments), the document
presented to the FAWG suggested an accounting treatment of these payments which (directly or
indirectly) finance/support public broadcasting entities, with the aim to ensure a harmonised
treatment across the EU Member States. As a follow-up it was concluded that Eurostat would
launch a written consultation on this subject.
The context around TV and/or radio payments had considerably changed over the past 20-30 years
in many countries. Whilst at the beginning of public broadcasting, the payment to the public
broadcaster1 was undertaken in the framework of a monopoly TV and/or radio service, this does not
seem to apply anymore. So while in the past there was a clear and direct link between the payments
and the service received by watching a public broadcaster (the only ones which existed), now with
the creation of the private broadcasters this direct link has been considerably blurred.
This questionnaire seeks MS' views on the most appropriate accounting treatment in national
accounts (Part I theoretical questions). At the same time, Eurostat would like to update and
complete the information on public broadcasting across Member States (Part II country
questions), as the information on these issues received in the context of 2008 Questionnaire2 may
have become outdated.
Part I of this questionnaire aims to explore the general circumstances under which a payment from
households or other entities (further referred to as payers) relating to public broadcasting should be
regarded as compulsory and unrequited.
Compulsory means imposed by government, (i.e., in this context, compulsory implies
an obligation), set in some legal document, to make regular payments relating to public
broadcasting, by users. However, such a legal document does not necessarily fix the way how the
amount to be paid should be determined. Such a power can be delegated to other bodies together or
not with collection of these payments.

1 Obviously if the payment would not be passed to the public broadcaster but provided to government which would decide how
much of it should be passed to the public broadcaster, this payment would have the nature of a tax.

2 "Questionnaire on the Treatment of television and radio licences in national accounts", circulated to FAWG in June 2008 .
1

An unrequited transaction (i.e. transfer) is a transaction in which one institutional unit provides
a good, service, or asset to another unit without receiving from the latter something in return as
a direct counterpart, under the form of a cash payment or another asset. In addition, there must be
an adequacy between the two sides of the transaction, such as a quantity of goods or a volume of
services consumed. In this context, if there is no or weak link between the volume of broadcasting
services and the payment, such a payment should be perceived as unrequited, i.e. a transfer (and not
as an exchange). A link between the volume of broadcasting services individually consumed by
users and the individual payment for these services could be for example based on a number of
public channels which can be received by a user, number of broadcasting hours per day/week
consumed (watched), etc.
Compulsory and unrequited payments made to government are treated in national accounts as taxes
(ESA 2010 20.165). In principle, in case the definition of a tax is not met, then such payments
related to public broadcasting should be treated in national accounts as sales of services.
Finally, in case that a compulsory and unrequited payment related to public broadcasting, (i.e. in
national accounts is classified as a tax), such payment has to be rerouted via government accounts
(S.13) as a matter of principle because only government (and rest of the world in other
circumstances) can levy taxes.
The results of this written consultation and the summary of the replies will be presented in the 2nd
meeting of the TF on methodological issues (MGDD), 21-22 May 2015, possibly together with
a draft proposal of the text to be included in the future 2015 edition of the MGDD. The issue will be
then brought forward to the June's meeting of the EDP Statistics WG (former FAWG).

Please reply to the questionnaire before Friday 8th May, 2015, COB
Replies should be sent to ESTAT-D1-SECRETARIAT@ec.europa.eu and to Lenka Valenta
(Lenka.VALENTA@ec.europa.eu).

COUNTRY:
INSTITUTION:
DATE OF ANSWER:

Please tick the appropriate answer(s), where relevant.

Part I: Theoretical questions on the classification of TV and/or radio payments in national

accounts (please answer irrespective of your country's situation)

Q1: Would you agree with the following statement: If an obligation to regularly pay for
public broadcasting is imposed by government to users (by some decree, regulation,
law or similar document), this fact implies that this payment is compulsory? In case of
the answer "no", please explain (in comments below this question).

Yes
No

Comments:

Q2: Would you agree with the following statement: When an entity legally independent
from government (such as a board, an agency, or a NPI, or any other entity), is
delegated authority to decide on issues normally reserved to government (such as
deciding of payment levels, etc.), such an entity is de facto exercising government
powers, and should be seen as acting on behalf of government.

Yes
No
Comments:

For the following questions 3 to 5, let's assume that a compulsory payment relating to
public broadcasting has to be made by users (on whatever basis3).

Q3: Would you agree with the following statement: In case that it is not possible to
legally avoid paying for public broadcasting services (despite only consuming private
broadcasting services), it implies that such a payment shall be perceived as unrequited
(a transfer) and such a transaction considered a tax?

Yes
No

Comments:

Q4: Would you agree with the following statement: If it is possible to legally avoid
paying (but still consume private broadcasting services) and at the same time the
individual payment (made by user and the corresponding receipt by the public
broadcaster), is not linked to individual consumption of public broadcasting services, it
implies that such a payment shall be perceived as unrequited (a transfer) and
the transaction thus considered a tax?

Yes
No

Comments:

Q5: Would you agree with the following statement: If it is possible to legally avoid
paying (but still consume private broadcasting services) and at the same time
the individual payment (made by user and the corresponding receipt by the public
broadcaster), is linked to individual consumption of public broadcasting services, it
implies that such a payment could be perceived as an exchange and the transaction
thus considered a sale of service?

Yes
No
Comments:

3 For example on the basis of ownership or use of a TV/radio set, ownership or use of any other relevant device (a PC, laptop,
mobile phone, etc.), other condition as for example the residency, connection to electricity network, etc.

Part II: Country arrangements concerning public the TV and/or radio broadcasting

Q6: Do users in your country pay for public broadcasting?

Yes
No
Comments:
Note: In case you answered "no" in this Q6, i.e. households (and other entities) do not pay for
public broadcasting in your country (the fee does not exist), please disregard the following
questions Q7 to Q13.

Q7: Please provide details on the entities which are in charge of/involved in providing
public TV and/ or radio broadcasting (or possibly other relating services).
In case that this/these unit(s) directly collect(s) payments relating to public
broadcasting, please indicate in the table below (last column) how such a payment is
classified in national accounts (ESA 2010).

Official
name

Field of activities
(public radio, TV,
other)

Sector classification ESA

2010 (subsector code)

Classification of the payment

received (ESA2010 code)

Comments:

Q8: Please provide details on the entities which are in charge of collecting payments,
relating to public broadcasting, in case that this/these entity/ies differ(s) from public
broadcasting entity/ies you stated in the previous Q7.

Official name

Sector classification in ESA

2010 (subsector code)

Classification of the payments

received (ESA 2010 code)

Comments:

Q9: Is a payment relating to public broadcasting imposed in your country by

government (by some law or similar)? In case you answer "no" to this question, please
provide details (in comments below this question).

Yes

No
Comments:

Q10: Is a payment relating to public broadcasting imposed in your country by

government (by some law or similar), but fixing the amount to be paid is delegated to
an entity legally independent from government (such as a board, an agency, or a NPI, or
any other entity)? In case you answer "yes" to this question, please provide details
(in comments below this question).

Yes
No
Comments:

Q11: Please explain on which basis the payment relating to public broadcasting is
collected. Please provide details in case of the answer "other" (in comments below this
question).

Ownership of TV/radio
Ownership of any relevant device (computer, tablet, mobile phone, etc.)
Use of TV/radio for consumption of public broadcasting services/
ability to consume public broadcasting
Use of any device (computer, mobile phone, etc.) for consumption of
public broadcasting services/ability to consume public broadcasting
Connection to the electricity network
Residency
Other

Comments:

Q12: Is it possible to legally avoid making payments relating to public broadcasting,

while consuming only private broadcasting services? In case you answer "yes" to this
question, please provide details (in comments below this question).

Yes
No
Comments:

Q13: Do you think that a link between the individual consumption of public broadcasting
services (independent of private broadcasting) and a payment relating to public
6

broadcasting could be established in your country? In case of answer "yes", please

provide details on how this would be done (in comments below this question).

Yes
No
Comments: