The OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) Mission to Serbia is holding a two-day conference on the subject of the media scene development and its conditions of functioning in the era of digitalization. „It is clear that the Internet has now become indispensable and inevitable, when one is talking about dissemination of free ideas, information and opinions. However, the attempts to control these contents and restrict these freedoms, tend to turn Internet into a means of control, which could have a catastrophic effect on the media pluralism and hinder democratic development and freedom of any country“, said the Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Andrea Orizio.
During the two-day event entitled Agenda for Change: Developing Media in the Digital Age, the emphasis was put on the principles of modern media policies, legal framework under which these policies work, copyrights and independence of regulatory bodies. The objective of the conference is to present the newest legislation trends in media policies, within the digital environment.
The conference is divided into four sessions: digital single market and media legal framework for 21st century, independence of regulatory bodies and creation of the environment for advanced digital networks and innovative services, re-thinking national strategies for journalists’ security in digital era and new technologies and future of journalism.

Speaking about the independence of regulatory bodies, dr Vladica Tintor, director of RATEL, said that BEREC (the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications), in its official position of October 11 this year, highlighted the particular importance of the independence of regulatory bodies for electronic communications, since it guarantees fair and equal treatment of all market players. The regulator’s independence also implies the predictability of its regulatory activities, which is very important while planning long-term investments and innovations by market players. Taking into account that the sector of electronic communications is open and ready for significant investments – transparency, predictability and consistency in market regulation prove to be more important than ever, concluded the director of RATEL.
The conference will end tomorrow, with topics on strategy, new technologies and future of journalism.