Obligation to register Internet channels (YouTube, TikTok, Facebook) and the legal situation of creators on the audiovisual market according to Polish and European Union law

Abstract

European Union law has introduced a duty for creators engaged in the business of providing various types of on-demand audiovisual content to register. In practice, this duty applies to individuals running audiovisual channels on platforms such as You Tube and similar platforms. The people concerned are very different, providing content of an educational nature (platforms for learning foreign languages, e.g. English, Spanish). The registration duty is also to be extended to those who also provide typically entertaining channels on digital platforms (e.g. reviews of films, books, computer games, comics). These individuals include creators, i.e. entities that provide certain intellectual content to the Internet protected, for example, by copyright and related rights. Relevant registers are to be kept in member states by public administration bodies, such as the National Broadcasting Council in Poland. The purpose of the above duty is increased control over the safety of content provided to the Internet (e.g. from the point of view of whether it is suitable for children or whether it does not contain hate speech). In addition, the purpose of the said duty is also to control whether the owners of channels on YouTube, Tik-Tok, etc. properly settle the income they earn through published content. The Polish legislator wants to propose new legal solutions in this respect. This is because the European Union legislator has introduced certain requirements, but has not determined how they would be implemented. The presentation of the experience of the Polish legislator may be interesting for the Ukrainian viewer, especially in view of Ukraine's aspirations to become a member of the European Union. If Ukraine joins the European Union, it will be obliged to implement relevant solutions in this respect. In this article, I have tried to show that the issue of registration of persons providing audiovisual media services is a new problem in the European Union, raising considerable public concern. The obligation to register audiovisualmedia service providers should not be too broad and cover providers that have a small audience or publish new content irregularly. Therefore, it is important to introduce clear criteria for which audiovisual media service providers should be registered.