Sarah Geeroms
Innovative/strategic partner­-
ships at VRT & Head of Future Media Hubs

Lieke Decosemaker
VRT – Future Media Hubs

Introduction

Europe is a leading force in journalism, culture and audiovisual storytelling. It produces high-quality media that informs citizens, strengthens democratic debate and reflects Europe’s diverse cultures. Yet the balance of power has shifted massively. While Europe continues to create valuable content and attract large audiences, the infrastructures that distribute, monetise and analyse that content are increasingly controlled by non-European platforms. As a result, much of the economic value and strategic influence generated by Europe’s media ecosystem flows elsewhere.

This growing gap between content creation and platform control is a core issue for European media sovereignty. Ensuring that European media organisations can compete, innovate and maintain direct relationships with their audiences is therefore not only an economic priority, but also a democratic one.

Europe creates extraordinary media value, but the profit flows elsewhere

Europe remains one of the world’s largest media markets. The audiovisual and news media sector generates around €111 billion annually, complemented by roughly €21 billion in yearly public service media investment in content creation. This sustains a vibrant ecosystem of journalists, producers, creators and media companies across the continent.

However, the way audiences access content has fundamentally changed. Consumption increasingly takes place on global platforms, rather than services controlled by European media organisations. According to the European Audiovisual Observatory, 61% of hours watched on subscription streaming services in Europe is US content. Furthermore, 82% of VOD viewing time in Europe occurs on US platforms.

This shift has profound consequences for the media ecosystem. Platforms do not only distribute content; they also control the first-party audience data that determines how content is recommended, targeted and monetised. Access to this data is the key strategic asset of the digital media economy. It allows companies to understand audience behaviour, personalise services, improve recommendations, optimise advertising models and build long-term relationships with users. When this data is mediated through external platforms, media organisations lose both insight into their audiences and control over how their content reaches them.

This weakens pluralism, competitiveness and digital sovereignty. Algorithms may prioritise engagement over diversity, media companies cannot fully monetise their audiences, and key decisions about information flows occur outside European governance structures. With trust in media across Europe falling to 34%, the consequences are clearly visible. 51% of Europeans even actively avoid the news, contributing to democratic disengagement and increased vulnerability to misinformation.

Economically, the imbalance is equally striking. European audiences spend roughly €47 billion annually on media products and services, yet 81% of this spending flows to non-European companies. At the same time, Europe’s digital infrastructure is heavily dependent on US providers such as Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Meta. The result is a structural paradox: Europe produces the content and delivers the audience, but non-European platforms control the infrastructure, the revenue streams and increasingly what people see.

Protecting the audience is not enough

Europe has taken important regulatory steps to protect media freedom and democratic discourse. Initiatives such as the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) and the European Democracy Shield safeguard independent journalism, editorial autonomy and media pluralism. However, regulation alone cannot solve the structural challenges facing the European media sector. Protecting independence is only one part of the solution. Europe must also strengthen its innovation capacity and technological resilience to make those principles viable. In practice, this means designing the next generation of media technologies, platforms and user experiences based on the European values of transparency, accountability and pluralism.

This is precisely where the Future Media Initiative comes in. Build on the solid foundation of Future Media Hubs (bringing together about 60 European media companies to collaborate on media innovation), the Future Media Initiative proposes an industry-led public-private partnership for the next EU Multi-annual Financial Framework (2028–2034). Its goal is to unlock up to €500 million in coordinated investment for European media innovation. Rather than funding isolated experiments, the initiative introduces a structured “innovation funnel” approach. Promising project ideas developed by media companies can progress from early experimentation to large-scale implementation through staged investment.

This approach maximises impact while reducing risk. Projects are rigorously evaluated, refined and scaled only once they demonstrate clear value. Participating organisations can receive co-financing of up to 50% of their innovation costs, enabling ambitious technological development that would otherwise be difficult to fund. In doing so, the Future Media Initiative helps ensure that European media companies develop the infrastructures, tools and services needed to remain competitive and maintain direct relationships with their audiences.

Europe must design the solution together with the industry

Without coordinated action, Europe risks gradually losing control over the digital infrastructures that shape public discourse. The Future Media Initiative offers a practical solution by aligning industry, policy makers and investors around a shared goal: a sustainable, innovative and sovereign European media ecosystem.

Many leading organisations have already expressed their support, including Schibsted, France Télévisions, Fremantle and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). To further strengthen this momentum, we encourage media leaders across Europe to sign the Declaration of Support and to promote the initiative within their networks. At the same time, engagement with policy makers is essential. We are actively working with national authorities and European institutions – including Member State representatives and Members of the European Parliament – to ensure strong support for the initiative in future EU policy frameworks.

Conclusion

European media sovereignty is not about isolation or protectionism. It is about ensuring that Europe retains the ability to shape its own information environment, sustain trusted journalism and foster cultural diversity. Europe already has the talent, creativity and audience needed to lead. What it now needs is a stronger capacity to innovate and scale. By mobilising coordinated investment and strengthening collaboration across the industry, the Future Media Initiative ensures that European media organisations remain competitive, trusted and resilient.

The stakes are high. In a world where the information sphere has become a central arena of geopolitical competition, strengthening Europe’s media ecosystem is ultimately about protecting democracy itself