Chapter I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

The present law will operate with the following notions:

Audio-Visual Company - legal entity entitled to develop, produce and broadcast audiovisual programs.

Public Audio-Visual Company - company founded exclusively on state owned capital or on a prevailing state capital share, jointly with other public or private capital, which is independent in its creative activity and reflects the interest of all social groups.

Private Audio-Visual Company - company founded exclusively on private capital or on a prevailing private capital share, which reflects the interests of one person or a group of persons.

Broadcasting License - authorization, issued by empowered bodies, legitimating the right to broadcast the audio-visual programs.

Article 2.

(1) In the Republic of Moldova, the right to a free expression of ideas and opinions, to a free audio-visual communication of information, as well as the right to a complete, reliable and operative information, is guaranteed by law, on the basis of constitutional freedom and rights.

(2) The pluralism of opinions and the copyright are guaranteed by the state.

(3) The audio-visual companies are not censored.

Article 3.

The freedom of audio-visual expression presupposes the strict observance of the Constitution and does not allow the detriment of other persons' honor, dignity, private life and right to have their own views.

Article 4.

(1) The present law regulates the activity of companies, studios, posts, organizations and other agents from the audiovisual domain, and determines their judicial, economic and organizational principles of activity.

(2) The present law does not regulate the relationships appeared during the development and operation of closed audio-visual companies (manufacturing, technological, training, etc.); other types of communication, acting for individual use and not for mass broadcast; activity of various radio fans' societies; as well as audio-video rental activities.

Article 5.

(1) An audio-visual company can be founded by one or more physical or legal persons from Republic of Moldova with any legal structure, in compliance with the present legislation.

(2) Foreign physical or legal persons, except those participating in cooperation with Moldovan partners in joint ventures, are not allowed to create audio-visual companies on the territory of Republic of Moldova.

Article 7.

(1) The state company " TeleRadio-Moldova" is a public audio-visual company and can not be privatized.

(2) The President of the state company " TeleRadio-Moldova", the TV Broadcasting General Director and Radio Broadcasting General Director, who are at the same time the vice-presidents of the company; the directors of the other public audio-visual companies, are appointed by the Parliament at the proposal of the TV & Radio Coordination Council for a 5-year period.

Article 10.

The audio-visual broadcasting is performed on the basis of a license and a network access authorization, issued in compliance with the present law.

Article 12.

The audio-visual companies are to communicate to the public:

- the name and the administrative location of the company;

- the author of the audio-visual program;

- radio station signals or the TV studio logo.

Article 13.

(3) Audiovisual institutions, public or private, broadcast at least 65% of their audiovisual programs in the state language. This provision does not extend to the TV programs broadcast via satellite and provided by cable, as well as foreign stations and stations that broadcast in areas compactly populated with ethnic minorities.

(4) At least 50% from the programs of public audiovisual institutions will consist of products made in the Republic of Moldova.

Article 14.

The TV & Radio Coordination Council is created as an independent body of public authority to perform its activity in compliance with the present law.

Chapter II
BROADCASTING LICENSE

Article 15.

(1) The broadcasting license stipulates the types of information that can be mass broadcast.

(2) The broadcasting license is issued by the TV & Radio Coordination Council, on a tender basis, at which all applicants can participate. The preliminary technical specification, issued by the central specialized body, is submitted to the TV & Radio Coordination Council not later than 30 days from the date the frequency (channel) for audiovisual communications was made available.

(3) The participation conditions at the tender and the evaluation criteria are announced in public, by the TV & Radio Coordination Council, not later than 45 days before the beginning of the tender.

(4) The evaluation criteria and the requirement for a broadcasting license should ensure the pluralism of opinions, evaluation equity, quality and diversity of the programs, promotion of the free competition, of creativity and of national audio-visual programs, the integrity and an unbiased content of the TV & Radio programs.

(5) The access of the social and political, cultural, religious and other groups, to the audiovisual programs, is performed in compliance with the provisions of the present article and the conditions stipulated in the broadcasting license.

Chapter VI
RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF THE AUDIO-VISIUAL COMPANIES AND THEIR EMPLOYEES

Article 28.

(1) An audio-visual company is required:

e) not to diffuse materials inciting pornography and violence.

Chapter VII
TV& RADIO COORDINATION COUNCIL

Article 31.

(1) The TV & Radio Coordination Council comprises 9 members, assigned by the:

a) Parliament - 3 members (including one audio-visual specialist);

b) President of Republic of Moldova - 3 members (including one audio-visual specialist);

c) Government - 3 members (including one specialist in telecommunications).

(2) The members of the TV & Radio Coordination Council are assigned for a 5 years period. They are the guarantee of the public interest and do not represent the authority that assigned them.

Article 33.

As a member of the TV & Radio Coordination Council, this person has to cease its activity in any political party. At the same time, this person is not allowed to perform any activity as a diffuser or producer of audio-visual programs.

Article 37.

(1) The TV & Radio Coordination Council establishes compulsory rules regarding the implementation of the present law in the audiovisual institutions activity.

5) The TV & Radio Coordination Council guarantees, by its conditions and criteria of issuing the broadcasting frequencies and channels, certain priorities for producers and broadcasters of local audiovisual creations mainly in the state language.

Chapter VIII
RESPONSIBILITIES

Article 44.

The following activities are subject to punishment in compliance with the legislation:

b) development and broadcasting of the programs with the violation of the art. 3 provisions;

Chapter IX
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

Article 47.

(1) The international cooperation in the related audio-visual field is regulated by the agreements and conventions concluded by the TV and Radio Coordination Council or other audio-visual companies from Republic of Moldova with similar foreign companies.

(2) The international agreements and conventions, to which Republic of Moldova has adhered, are prior to the provisions of the present law.

The President of the Parliament
Petru Luchinschi
Chishinau, October 3,1995
Nr. 603-XIII

On the basis of the Article 93 of the Constitution of Republic of Moldova, the President of Moldova decrees:

Article 1. - The Law on Audio-Visual Broadcasting is promulgated under the Nr. 603-XIII as of October 3, 1995, and presented on November 9, 1995.

The President of Republic of Moldova
Mircea Snegur
Chisinau, November 24, 1995 Nr. 102-p.

Source: Unofficial translation