Cuts to local TV in Wallonia will lead to channel mergers

Cuts to publicly funded local TV channels in Wallonia will result in a reduction from 12 to eight media organisations by 2031 and the creation of six strategic geographical clusters.

The provinces of Namur and Hainaut will have to adapt the most, according to the latest plans from the Wallonia-Brussels Federation.

The reform of local media (médias de proximité) has been expected for some time and was approved at the end of last week at its final reading.

Led by media minister Jacqueline Galant (MR), it aims to ensure the “sustainability of local news in the face of profound changes to the media landscape”, Galant said in a statement.

“Without reform, it is the very future of local media that is under threat,” Galant said.

“At a time when major media groups are merging, major broadcasters are strengthening their partnerships and advertising revenue is falling, how can we imagine that 12 organisations could continue to operate side by side in such a small area?”

Eight recognised media organisations will have to form partnerships around six strategic hubs - one for each province - with the possibility of partnering with other private players. 

All 12 local media brands in Wallonia and Brussels could survive, but some would have to merge to be grouped into the six geographical hubs.

For the time being, each local media outlet is responsible for covering news within a defined area, comprising a well-established set of municipalities. 

Despite the reduction in the number of local media outlets, the reform stipulates that they must continue to guarantee coverage for every municipality in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, though the practical details still need to be clarified.

“We have this obligation, but in practice, what does it mean to cover all the municipalities in our coverage area - visit them once, twice? There’s still nothing concrete,” said Valérie Dumont, director of Télésambre. 

“We’re worried about marginalising certain residents who will feel neglected and turn to the news they find on social media.”

Financial support of €1.2 million is earmarked to provide technical assistance to the merged organisations, but questions remain regarding how budgets will be allocated, who will lead the future hubs and how outlets can retain their teams and their local knowledge.

“The rules are unknown,” said Laurent Constantiello, director of Matélé, which broadcasts in the Dinant area.

“We don’t know the weighting of the criteria, we don’t know the selection process, we don’t know the assessment method. As long as we don’t have any of these details, it’s impossible to discuss or consider any kind of structure.”

At Antenne Centre, which is based in La Louvière, director Michaël Kaibeck also has questions: “I read in the reform that media organisations will have to reapply for coverage zones from 2031. But at this stage, nothing has been decided. So we’re still in the process of analysing and considering the situation.”

Whilst Hainaut and the province of Liège will be able to retain two of their local media outlets, this is not the case for the province of Namur, which will have to reduce to a single local media outlet. 

The areas currently covered by the three current media outlets are very different: Boukè covers Namur and Philippeville in particular, Matélé covers the Dinant and the Haute-Meuse regions, and Canal Zoom covers Gembloux, as well as part of Walloon Brabant. From 2031, they will have to operate under a single legal structure with a single decision-making and logistics centre. 

Matélé’s Constantiello said that this decision would clearly have an impact on the coverage of certain areas from which Matélé could become geographically distanced. 

“From the outset, we have championed local media that are close to their communities and their people,” Constantiello said.

“We believe in Matélé’s model, with a coverage area that we can genuinely serve: Matélé’s identity is firmly rooted in Dinant.”

Many news outlets fear losing independence and local identity.

Télésambre’s Dumont said that it was still too early to say how mergers will take place but that Télésambre is ready to pool resources “while retaining each broadcaster’s unique characteristics”. 

“For example, here, we’ve already been sharing a technical role between Boukè, TV Com and Télésambre for five years, so this is  task that designs the entire workflow for each local media outlet, which can act as back-up for one another,” Dumont said.

“Now things are moving faster. We need to sit down together and think this through.”

Antenne Centre’s Kaibeck echoed this sentiment: “The key to the debate is how to guarantee local news coverage in Hainaut for the benefit of residents, because ultimately, who is going to pay?”

Discussions among local media organisations are only just beginning and they have until January 2031 to agree on the mergers and synergies they wish to implement by that deadline. Until then, no major changes should be expected.