Use of standards for the transmission of television signals (repeal. Directive 92/38/EEC)

In adopting the Caudron report, the European Parliament amended the Council's common position. It stressed that operators of conditional access services should be entitled to earn a return on their investments and for the provision of services to broadcasters. It also provided for the possibility of appeal to an arbitration body or the national regulatory authority in the case of a dispute and highlighted the need for efficient anti-piracy legislation. It stressed that the 16:9 format should be the reference format for wide-format television services. Parliament also called for the following measures: - conditional access should not be limited to Pay-TV services; - Member States should take all the necessary measures to ensure that the operators of conditional access services and cable TV providers, who produced and marketed access services to digital television services, offered access to all broadcasters, on a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory basis, and keep separate financial accounts regarding their activity as conditional access providers; - all consumer equipment, for sale or rent or otherwise made available in the Community, should possess the capability to display signals that had been transmitted in clear; - the Commission should examine the implementation of this directive and the development of the market for digital television services throughout the European Union and submit a report to the European Parliament and to the Council. �