French Ambassador Mattei to EF on CoE AudioVisual body 2018 Presidency: Culture = Key for Cohesion+

*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- French Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the CoE, Jean-Baptiste Mattei, speaking to "Eurofora" on the occasion of the take-over of the PanEuropean (47 Member States-strong, Russia included) Organisation's AudioVisual Experts' Presidency by France for the Year 2018, agreed that, in addition to the fact that "the Human Right for Freedom of Expression includes the Access to Culture", as he stressed, "Culture" offers also that "Common Base of our Imaginary", with which "each one must be able to identify himself", for the "Cohesion" of those "fellow European Citizens" to whom French President Macron recently Appealed in order to "design a Great Project" and "ReVive a European Ambition", for a more Sovereign, more Democratic, and Better Europe for our People, as he said in his New Year Address, practically Joining German Chancellor Angie Merkel's parallel call for "Us, Europeans", to "Hold Together as a Community", that she named as "the Crucial Issue of the coming years", (Comp. : ....).

- In this regard too, European AudioVisual Observatory's (EAVO) capacity to offer "Reliable and Trustworthy Experts"' insight, to Economy, Political Decision-makers, and the Public at large, is particularly Useful, Ambassador Mattei noted earlier.

+ But, in order to Help Build such an "Imaginary", obviously, a Stronger "European Production" of original "AudioVisual" Works is needed, admitted the New Director on Economy in CoE's AudioVisual Observatory, Gilles Fontaine, speaking afterwards to "Eurofora", on the occasion of that same event Today in Strasbourg.

- However, while it's expected that the current Worldwide Trend towards Distribution of AudioVisual Works mainly by Internet Service Providers, through Modern Digital Technologies, would Accentuate Further on 2018, it's also a Fact that, until now, Most of them are USA Companies, and it remains a Question Mark whether they will Invest in European Audiovisual Production, and/or if New European Internet Service Providers will Emerge, or not, in sufficient number, strength and quality, as Fontaine observed.

>>> Meanwhile, the incoming 2018 French Presidency of the EAVO has Decided to Focus, this Year, mainly on the Topical Issue of "Internet Platforms providing Videos", as announced officially Today the Competent Representative of France in that CoE's Body's Executive Council, Elizabeth Le Hot, deputy Director on Cultural Economy's development at the Ministry of Culture. Inter alia, a relevant International Colloquy will be organized in Paris, on June 2018, at the prestigious Museum of Quai Branly/"Jacques Chirac", she added, (reminding the Historic, Long-Time former French Prime Minister and President of the Republic, with whom "Eurofora"s co-Founder has cooperated during many Years in the Past, both at Elysée Palace, and in EU Summits in Brussels, as well as in Berlin, Germany, etc, then via "TCWeekly"+).

++ Nevertheless, independently of all that, and in Addition, the Year 2018 is also due to be impacted, even in the European AudioVisual sector, by "BREXIT" Negotiations in view of UK's planned Departure from the EU after March 2019, Because "the UK is very Deeply Involved in Europe's Audio-Visual realities", as EAVO's Executive Director, Susanne Nikoltchev from Germany, told "Eurofora".

- Nikoltchev, (who holds also a important Experience as former Head of EAVO's Legal section in Strasbourg), made clear that this is Not Limited only to the, already Important, Fact that Many EU Radio-TV Companies use to have Established Offices in the UK also in order to Transmit AudioVisual products to several Other EU Member Countries, (as Fontaine had observed earlier). Indeed, BREXIT's possible Effects to the European AudioVisual sector can be much More Wider than that, and concern also Manifold Other AV-related Issues, CEO Nikoltchev stressed, believing that EU's Chief BREXIT Negotiator, Michel Barnier's staff should, normally, be Aware of that, for the needs of the 2nd Phase Talks about UK's Future Relations with the EU.

After Poland, which has just passed over its 2017 EAVO's Presidency to France for 2018, it is Italy which is due to take over Next Year, on 2019 : A series of Three Countries with a Traditionally Strong Role on European Production of AudioVisual works, which might Help give a much needed Boost to this, both "Classic", but also Fully ReNovated and Modernized Sector of Economy, (which is in the process of being more and more Spectacularly Transformed by Digital Web-related Technologies) with manifold big Socio-Political Stakes, (Comp., f.ex.: ...).