This article is also available in:
Deutsch: Italien wünscht eine Lizenz für das Hochladen von Videos ins Interne...

The Italian Government intends to introduce a new decree that would require people who upload videos onto the Internet to get authorization from the Communications Ministry just like television broadcasters.

Article 4 of the respective decree, which is strongly pushed by Silvio Berlusconi, specifies that a ministerial authorisation is required for the dissemination over the Internet "of moving pictures, whether or not accompanied by sound." This will affect sites of newspapers, IPTV and mobile TV, as well as any person who wants to upload a video on a video-sharing website.

A press conference was held by the opposition in the Parliament on 14 January 2010 who consider the proposed decree as a threat to freedom of expression.

"The decree subjects the transmission of images on the Web to rules typical of television and requires prior ministerial authorization, with an incredible limitation on the way the Internet currently functions," said opposition lawmaker Paolo Gentiloni.

The decree was also criticised by Article 21, an organization supporting freedom of speech as stipulated in article 21 of the Italian constitution. The group launched an appeal on 15 January called "Hands Off the Net" against the decree in which they state that the proposed measures would only represent "the end of freedom of expression on the Web" and would prevent the Italian citizens from placing their own moving pictures on the Internet.

Nicola D'Angelo, a commissioner in the Italian Communications Authority, considers that the decree goes against the EU AudioVisual Media Services directive by the extension of the rules that apply to television to online video content.

Many critics consider that the decree is the result of the Prime Minister Berlusconi's interests as owner of Mediaset, Italy's largest private TV broadcaster.

Reporters Without Borders expressed its concern regarding the decree as a threat to freedom of expression and urged the Constitutional court to reject it entirely.

The European Commission has also reacted, following complaints from the Italian Associations. "The Commission services will launch an infringement procedure for non-notification against Italy," an EU official told EurActiv.com. He also added "the E-Commerce Directive provides that there is no general monitoring obligation for Internet service providers", which the Italian new decree is contradicting. Moreover, the official made clear that "pure video-sharing platforms do not meet the definition of an audiovisual media service," and therefore should not be covered by national laws "as far as they do not exercise editorial decisions".

Proposed Web video restrictions cause outrage in Italy (15.01.2010)
http://www.thestandard.com/news/2010/01/15/proposed-web-video-restrict...

Italy proposes mandatory licenses for people who upload video (16.01.2010)
http://www.boingboing.net/2010/01/16/italy-proposes-manda.html

A law to change the Net into a big TV (only in Italian, 14.01.2010)
http://punto-informatico.it/2786742/PI/Commenti/una-legge-trasformare-...

Italy wants to regulate Google and Youtube (25.01.2010)
http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/opinion/1588404/italy-regulate-goo...

Government wants to clamp down on online video (20.01.2010)
http://www.rsf.org/Government-wants-to-clamp-down-on.html

YouTube, EU e-commerce rules under threat (27.01.2010)
http://www.euractiv.com/en/infosociety/youtube-eu-commerce-rules-threa...