3 western news sites need to obtain licences to stream in Turkey

Three Western news websites could be banned in Turkey unless they apply for online broadcasting licences, the deputy chairman of the nation's broadcasting regulator told dpa on Wednesday.

US broadcaster Voice of America, Lyon-based Euronews and Bonn-based Deutsche Welle need to obtain licences to be able to continue streaming online, RTUK deputy head Ibrahim Uslu told dpa over the phone.

Uslu said the regulator would publish a detailed notice of its decision on its website "within a week to 10 days." After that, the websites would have 72 hours to comply.

He cited a regulation passed by parliament in 2018 under which the watchdog has the authority to ban or suspend domestic and foreign on-demand media services if they fail to obtain a licence from the RTUK. The law came into force in 2019.

"These three websites will be shut down unless they comply," Uslu said, adding that the decision "has nothing to do with censorship but is part of technical mesaures."

"We expect them to comply," he added.

The three websites need to establish a company based in Turkey once they apply for licences, he said, adding that the RTUK is prepared to ask other foreign news websites to get licences as well.

Media in Turkey is already dominated by businesspeople close to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamic-conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP). Foreign news sites have recently become increasingly popular. Critics - among them İlhan Tasci, a member of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) - have slammed the regulation as censorship.

"Following the local media, the time has come to monitor and silence international news sites," Tasci wrote on Twitter.

The RTUK's 10-member board is dominated by the AKP and its far-right ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).

Last month, Erdogan warned that his government would take measures against media content deemed harmful to "national and spiritual values."

The RTUK has in the past fined television stations and streaming services, including Netflix, for broadcasting such content.

Netflix and Amazon Prime Video obtained the licence in question in 2020, according to state news agency Anadolu.

Turkey ranks 153 out of the 180 countries on Reporters Without Borders' 2021 World Press Freedom Index.

The RTUK's decision "puts international independent media operating in Turkey online under state scrutiny and risks making them the target of fines," the International Press Institute (IPI) said on Wednesday, warning of "further harassment of media."

The government "increasingly clamps down on political news, especially those criticizing the government and the president" ahead of the planned 2023 general elections, academic and cyber rights activist Yaman Akdeniz told dpa.