The Online Media Co-Regulation Authority along with Ukrainian media organisations called on Ukraine’s National Council for Television and Radio Broadcasting to introduce a moratorium on inspections and penalties related to the registration status of online media services, as per the statement where the media community stressed that legal clarity for online media outlets, YouTube channels, TikTok accounts, social media pages, and other digital platforms containing videos is necessary.
The signatories believe that the moratorium should remain in place until transparent, predictable, and market-agreed criteria drawing the lines between online media, non-linear audiovisual media services, and media distribution channels on social media and digital platforms are developed.
The Institute of Mass Information shares the full statement:
A statement on the necessity of a moratorium on inspections and penalties in view of the vague classification criteria for online media and non-linear audiovisual media services
The Online Media Co-Regulation Authority along with Ukrainian media organisations call on Ukraine’s National Council for Television and Radio Broadcasting to introduce a moratorium on inspections and penalties related to the registration status of online media services that the regulator considers or may consider as non-linear audiovisual media services, such as YouTube channels, TikTok accounts, social media pages containing videos, and other digital distribution platforms.
Such a moratorium should be in effect until transparent, predictable, and market-agreed criteria drawing the lines between online media, non-linear audiovisual media services, and media distribution channels on social media and digital platforms are developed.
This is not a denial of the regulator’s mandate. This is required by the basic principle of legal clarity. The market cannot be penalised according to rules whose content and boundaries remain unclear and change without public explanation, consultation, or a transition period.
Digital media resources, including social media pages and content distribution channels, have been registered as online media outlets for a long time. Suddenly changing this practice without coordinating it with the market, consultations, or clear criteria creates legal uncertainty for the entire market. The biggest risk is that each YouTube channel, TikTok account, or other digital page of a news outlet may be arbitrarily declared a separate media service, calling for separate registration, fee, liability, and sanctions. This approach disregards the way the media really work, as in most cases these platforms are only distribution channels or parts of one media outlet, controlled by one editorial entity, rather than a group of independent audiovisual media services.
The act of distributing a video on YouTube, TikTok, or other platforms alone can not automatically create a new regulatory status. This should be defined by the service’s content and organisation, editorial control, independent editorial logic, the video content’s baseline character and program structure, as opposed to the platform where the media outlet seeks its audience.
The situation in which regional, local, and niche independent media outlets find themselves is of particular concern. The requirement to register each digital platform separately will become a real barrier to development and innovation for small media teams. In wartime, when Ukrainian media are working under physical, economic, and safety strain, the state should support socially responsible media outlets, and not create administrative traps for them. This will also have a chilling effect on media freedom, as media outlets will turn down new video formats and digital products not because they violate the law, but due to a fear of unpredictable qualifications and fines.
Ukraine is on its way into the European Union, and media regulation must align with European logic. Meaning, it must be transparent, predictable, proportionate, and aimed at protecting pluralism in the media, rather than creating excessive administrative pressure.
In view of this, we call on the National Council:
- To introduce a moratorium on inspections and penalties related to the registration status of online media services until transparent and market-approved criteria are developed.
- Refrain from requiring that each content distribution platform be registered as a separate media service if it is a distribution channel of a media outlet controlled by one editorial entity. The notion of “distribution platforms” is a meaningful elaboration on “media service provision technology” in clause 10 of article 63 of the Law of Ukraine “On Media”, which already allows registering several technologies in one application and paying one fee for them.
- Begin consultations with the media market, co-regulation bodies, specialised civil society organisations, regional media outlets, and the expert community.
- Grant a transition period after the relevant criteria are adopted so that media outlets can bring their work into line with the new requirements without pressure and the risk of immediate fines.
Media regulation should protect the public interest, not create chaos, fear, and legal uncertainty. Active editorial teams that develop new formats and seek audiences on modern platforms are part of what makes Ukraine’s democracy resilient in wartime and they count on state support.
Signed:
Online Media Co-Regulation Authority
NGO Institute of Mass Information
NGO Detector Media
NGO Toloka Association
NGO Mykolaiv Media Hub
Online news outlet MykVisti
Online news outlet Reporter
Espreso
NGO Prozoro Centre for Media Investigations
NGO ProMedia
News website Novynarnia
Ukrainska Pravda
Online news outlet OBOZ.UA
JSC National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine
Babel
Hromadske Radio
Online news outlet ZHAR.INFO
NGO Women’s Anti-Corruption Movement
Civil society association Print Media Co-Regulation Authority
