Press release

Minister O’Donovan secures government approval of the General Scheme of the Media Regulation Bill

From: Department of Culture, Communications and Sport
Published on: 2 July 2025
Last updated on: 3 July 2025

Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, Patrick O’Donovan, has today announced government approval of the General Scheme of the Media Regulation Bill, which will implement the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) in Ireland.

EMFA is an EU regulation which puts in place new rules to protect media pluralism and independence and seeks to ensure that media can operate more easily across borders in the EU.

The General Scheme will give effect to the main elements of EMFA in Irish law. It will modernise Ireland’s existing media mergers framework and introduce new rules in relation to state expenditure on advertising.

Welcoming the approval of the General Scheme, Minister O’Donovan said:

“A free and independent media is a cornerstone of democracy and plays a vital role in informing the public and holding powerful institutions and interests to account. EMFA will protect media freedom and pluralism across the EU, and provide a stable and safe environment for the media to operate and grow in.

“Ireland already has a robust regulatory framework designed to protect media freedom and independence, which is well aligned with EMFA, and the implementation of EMFA through the Media Regulation Bill will strengthen these existing protections.”

The General Scheme will amend the existing framework for media mergers under the Competition Act to align with EMFA, including bringing transactions involving online platforms into scope, and will see responsibility for the assessment of media mergers transfer from the Minister to Coimisiún na Meán.

The legislation will also provide for increased transparency around state expenditure on advertising. Public bodies will be required to report annually on their advertising spend and Coimisiún na Meán will be tasked with monitoring and producing an annual report based on this information.

Minister O’Donovan said:

“The media mergers regime is an essential element of Ireland’s regulatory framework for media and provides important protections for media plurality and diversity. It is vital that the media mergers regime operates effectively, and is modernised, as the media landscape, both in Ireland and internationally, continues to evolve.

“In assuming responsibility for the assessment of media mergers, Coimisiún na Meán will be able to leverage its experience and expertise in relation to media plurality.

“State advertising is an important source of income for many media outlets. The General Scheme will introduce a new regulatory framework for state advertising and will provide for greater transparency around the allocation of public funds for advertising.”

The General Scheme will also designate Coimisiún na Meán as the body responsible for overseeing the development of a media ownership database and engaging with industry to promote transparency around audience measurement systems.

The approval of Government will allow for publication of the General Scheme and drafting of the new Bill.

Notes

The General Scheme of the Media Regulation Bill can be accessed below:

General Scheme of Media Regulation Bill

View

EMFA

The European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) is a response to concerns at EU level around the erosion of media freedom and the rule of law in certain Member States. It aims to strengthen the internal market for media services and protect media pluralism and independence in the EU by harmonising relevant national Member State rules and procedures.

Some of the key elements of EMFA include:

protection of journalistic sources;
safeguards for the independence of public service media;
transparency of media ownership;
safeguards against the removal of recognised media content by Very Large Online Platforms;
procedures for the assessment of media mergers; and
transparency requirements in relation to audience measurement systems and state advertising

To support implementation, EMFA also provides for the establishment of a new European Board for Media Services to be comprised of national media regulators (in Ireland’s case Coimisiún na Meán).

EMFA is a regulation and directly applicable to Member States. The majority of EMFA’s provisions will apply from 8 August 2025. While the majority of its provisions are well-aligned with the existing regulatory framework for media in Ireland, some elements require further implementation in Irish law in order to have full effect.

Media Regulation Bill

The General Scheme of the Media Regulation proposes to implement the main elements of EMFA through a number of changes to the existing legislative framework, primarily related to media mergers and transparency around advertising by the State.

Media Mergers

EMFA requires that Member States provide in legislation for the assessment of media market concentrations which could have a significant impact on media pluralism and editorial independence. EMFA’s requirements differ in a number of ways from Ireland’s existing media mergers regime under the Competition Act 2002 (as amended), and the General Scheme sets out a range of amendments to ensure alignment.

In line with the wider scope of EMFA, the General Scheme makes a number of amendments as to what is considered a media merger, including bringing online platforms providing access to media content into scope. EMFA also requires that Member States delegate responsibility for the assessment of media mergers to their national regulatory authority, or ensure that they are “substantively involved” in the assessment. In line with this requirement, the proposed legislation will see the transfer of primary responsibility for media mergers from the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport to Coimisiún na Meán.

State Advertising

EMFA establishes transparency requirements with regard to state expenditure on advertising, including a requirement for public authorities or entities to publish information on the total amount spent and the amount spent with individual media providers. There are currently no specific rules regarding the overall framework for the allocation of state advertising in Ireland, and the General Scheme proposes a number of detailed implementing provisions to ensure the effective application of the requirements on state advertising under EMFA.

Public authorities and entities will be required to develop and publish a plan for compliance and publish information on their expenditure annually. The General Scheme also designates Coimisiún na Meán as the body responsible for monitoring and reporting on state advertising in Ireland.

Other provisions

The General Scheme includes obligations for Coimisiún na Meán to develop a national media ownership database in line with requirements set out in EMFA, and to encourage the adoption of codes of conduct by industry to promote transparency around audience measurement systems.

Broadcasting Amendment Bill

EMFA also sets out a number of safeguards which are designed to protect the independence of public service media such as RTÉ and TG4. Implementing measures are provided for in the General Scheme of the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill, which was previously approved by Government, as part of wider reforms of public service media governance.