Romanian Public Service Television: Struggle for Existence in the Digital Era

BIANCA MITU
University of Wolverhampton, United Kingdom

Abstract
The increasing use of the internet has brought new challenges for the public service television system all around the world. Despite the free access to information and the use of digital technology, the Eastern European public service television is still in a shading cone mostly because of the small scale of their broadcasting markets. This article tells the story of the Romanian public service television’s (TVR) path towards an uncertain future in the digital age. The article offers an overview of the major changes and challenges of TVR (in terms of remit, purpose, values, and objectives) since the fall of the Communist regime in 1989 and aims to address the following questions: Is public service television still relevant in the digital era? What are the present challenges and what is the future of the Romanian public service television in the digital era?

Keywords: Public service television, Internet, digital technologies, digital television, TVR.

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Dr. Bianca Mitu is a senior lecturer in broadcasting and journalism at the University of Wolverhampton, UK, before holding a lecturer position at the University of Huddersfield. She was a visiting scholar at the University of Westminster and the University of Paris III: Sorbonne Nouvelle. Broadly, her research interests lie in broadcasting and television studies, Internet studies and media sociology.