RTVE closed 2011 in the red

The 29 million deficit with which the 2011 financial year has now closed represents an improvement of 38.4 percent compared to the 47.1 million deficit with which the 2010 financial year closed and of 42 percent in relation to the forecast of 50 million euros of deficit that the previous president, Alberto Oliart, made in June 2011 before presenting his resignation.

The Board of Directors of RTVE finally approved this Tuesday, with several months of delay due to the legal vacuum caused by not having a president, the accounts for the 2011 financial year, which have finally been closed with a deficit of 29 million euros. The Corporation argues that this result would not mean breaking the budget balance since this figure would be offset by the approximately 60 million euros that telcos and private companies should have disbursed under the canon.

According to the RTVE Financing Law, telecommunications companies are required to contribute 0.9 percent of their income to RTVE; private open channels, 3 percent, and paid channels, 1.5 percent.

At the moment, telecommunications companies and private companies are appealing these payments since they argue that both the Telecommunications Market Commission (CMT) and RTVE interpret the income base in very broad terms.

The 29 million deficit with which the year has now closed represents an improvement of 38.4 percent compared to the 47.1 million deficit with which the 2010 financial year closed and of 42 percent in relation to the forecast of 50 million euros of deficit that the previous president, Alberto Oliart, made in June 2011 before presenting his resignation.