European TV News Market Continues to Expand

STRASBOURG: The number of news channels operating in Europe has hit 162, according to the European Audiovisual Observatory, double the number available in 2005.

Of the 162 channels operating in the European Union, Croatia and Turkey, 32 have an explicit international remit—they include Al Jazeera, BBC World, CNN International, Deutsche Welle, Euronews, France 24 and Sky News International. The report found that 87 are purely national news services; however, many of these have expanded beyond their original borders; Spain’s Canal 24 Horas is available in 16 European countries and the German channels n-tv and N24 are distributed in 15 countries. The Fox News Channel, ZDF infokanal and Rainews24 are also present in close to ten countries. The region’s bouquet of news networks includes 43 that originate from outside of Europe; about 40 percent of these target Arabic communities. The European Audiovisual Observatory also reports that almost half of the news channels in the region launched within the last five years; only 28 have been around for more than a decade. Another key finding is that 33 of the 119 European news channels are operated by public broadcasters. 

The market for news channels is currently worth more than 1 billion euros, however challenges remain for many of these channels in achieving profitability, the report notes. The European Audiovisual Observatory is holding a workshop at MIPCOM on October 7 where it will showcase its findings on the TV news market in the region.