MAVISE is a database on audiovisual media services, video sharing platforms and their jurisdiction in Europe

MAVISE provides information on the audiovisual media services and video sharing platforms available in Greater Europe. MAVISE includes on the one hand services based in Europe and indicates, when available, the registering body, the name of service in the registry and the service provider holding the registration. On the other hand, for services available in but based outside Europe, MAVISE estimates the AV service’s country of origin and, when available the service provider. In both cases, MAVISE also provides, when feasible, information on the final owner of the service provider.
Additionally, MAVISE tracks the jurisdiction of audiovisual media services and video sharing platforms under the AVMS Directive in EEA countries. Jurisdiction information is collected based on contributions made by the national regulatory authorities and/or ministries and is not assessed by the Observatory.

Use of different sources of information

The main resource is a collaboration with the European Platform of Regulatory Authorities (EPRA) and its network of European audiovisual regulatory authorities. Lyngemark Satellite is used to identify TV channels available in Europe without a current jurisdiction claim. The Media Intelligence Service of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the Orbis Europe database, press articles, reports, and information from TV companies are consulted as additional sources.

 

 

Services included in MAVISE

MAVISE includes audiovisual media services (linear television channels and on-demand services) and video-sharing platforms.

The database is managed on a best-effort basis by the European Audiovisual Observatory. MAVISE is updated on a regular basis, 2 months after any change is recorded in the national registries. 

Data as of: 31/08/2024

Last update: 10/10/2024

Total AV services available in MAVISE countries AV services with registration* AV services without registration
Under AVMSD jurisdiction** Under non-AVMSD jurisdiction only Available in at least one AVMSD country*** Available only in non-AVMSD countries
TV Channels 9 423 6 653 2 473 278 19
On-Demand Services 3 288 2 742 405 124 17
Video Sharing Platforms 110 88 19 3 0

* Includes public service media
** Includes services which might be at the same time also under a non-AVMSD jurisdiction
*** Services available in at least one EEA country. Also includes TV channels primarily targeting non-EEA countries if they are at the same time available for free on satellite in Europe

 

Information provided

  • Name of service: commercial name plus, when necessary, the indication of a specific territorial or linguistic version
  • Type of service: Television channel (TV), VOD (Video-on-Demand), VSP (Video sharing platforms)
  • Country: the country in whose national registry the service appears. For audiovisual services not registered in one of the countries covered by the European Audiovisual Observatory, the assigned country is an assumption of the Observatory based on a series of criteria, such as language, content and offices
  • Service provider: company (or person) operating the service. Entity that appears in the registry of a European regulatory authority and/or ministry
  • Final owner: highest ownership level controlling the service
  • Statute of service: public, private or mixed ownership depending on the type of final owner(s). When there is no available information with regards to the service provider, the statute of the service is unknown.
  • Targeted countries: core audience addressed by the audiovisual service from a geographical perspective which is either communicated by the service or assessed by the Observatory based on a series of criteria such as language, technical coverage, registration scope, programming/editorial agenda and other. A pan-European service addresses an international audience without a particular focus on one or several specific national territories. When “Pan-European” is mentioned together with distinct territories it means that the service is apriori addressing those territories while also being available in the rest of Europe for free
  • Targeted audience: core audience addressed by the audiovisual service from an editorial focus perspective which is either communicated by the service or assessed by the Observatory. In most cases this corresponds to the technical coverage of the AV service
  • Genre of the programming of the service
  • Registering bodies: entities usually represented by the European audiovisual regulatory authorities and/or ministries that have registered an audiovisual media service or a video sharing platform
  • Name in registry: name of the audiovisual service as stated in the registries of the European audiovisual regulatory authorities
  • Country of AVMSD jurisdiction: EU or EEA EFTA State under whose jurisdiction the service falls, pursuant to the Audiovisual Media Services Directive 2018/1808

 

Limits to the data collection

The census of audiovisual services in Europe faces a series of limits, including the following:

  • Lack of clearly identified country of registration. Services may appear to be operating in one given country, without being registered in this country or in any other country. In this case the registering body appears as “Unknown". In some countries, public service broadcasters, video-on-demand services and video sharing platforms are created by law and therefore the registering body appears as "Not Applicable (Public service broadcasting)".
  • Multiple registrations. Some services may be registered in more than one country for the following reasons: 1. they operate both within and outside the AVMSD and /or the European Convention on Transfrontier Television (ECTT); 2. in certain AVMSD countries within the European Union, a dedicated registration may be necessary to operate via DTT even for services already registered in another country; 3. the services have changed the country of their registration and the change is not yet reflected in the national registries and/or more than one registering body claims jurisdiction over the same service based on the Audiovisual Media Services Directive 2018/1808. In the case of multiple registrations, the service provider information is collected for the first regulatory authority mentioned in MAVISE.
  • Linguistic and territorial versions. Registrations may or may not be specific as regards the language and the geographical scope in which a service is being distributed.
  • Implementation of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive 2018/1808 into the national legal systems. The process of implementation of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive 2018/1808 into the national legal systems is ongoing. Therefore, the data collection of on-demand services and video-sharing platforms is not comprehensive.

 

About the European Audiovisual Observatory

Set up in December 1992, the European Audiovisual Observatory's mission is to gather and distribute information on the audiovisual industry in Europe. The Observatory is a European public service body comprised of 41 member states and the European Union, represented by the European Commission. It operates within the legal framework of the Council of Europe and works alongside a number of partner and professional organisations from within the industry and with a network of correspondents. In addition to contributions to conferences, other major activities are the publication of a Yearbook, newsletters and reports, the compilation and management of databases and the provision of information through the Observatory’s Internet site (http://www.obs.coe.int)