What is the purpose of the Programme “Aid to providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting for the production and distribution of audiovisual works of cultural nature on issues of public interest via the internet on demand, free of charge”?
The purpose of the Programme is the production and distribution by private providers of national free-to-air digital television broadcasting, through On Demand Television service of audiovisual works of cultural nature, for the citizens’ information and awareness-raising on issues of public interest, of cultural nature and with themes such as: Demographic issue / Equality, Health, Public Safety, Civil Protection, etc.
Through the Programme, the Providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting will provide, for the entire duration of this action, an on-demand 24-hour on – demand television service channel, on demand, free of charge, from which audiovisual works will be broadcasted, according to the description of the Programme Call.
To this end, the Programme will provide aid, in the form of grants, for the implementation of investment projects that cumulatively involve:
- Production of audiovisual works;
- Distribution of the above audiovisual works via the 24-hour on-demand service (on demand and free of charge) and promotion costs of the above audiovisual works.
The aid is available within the framework of Regulation No 651/2014 of the Commission of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty, as in force, and, in particular, of Article 54, having regard to the applicable the provisions of the definition of difficult audiovisual works in Article 2(140), provided that all the conditions of Chap. I and Article 54 thereof are met.
The budget of the Programme (total Public Expenditure) amounts to EUR 24,800,000.00. The Programme is funded from resources of the Digital Governance Sectoral Development Programme, within the framework of the National Development Programme and is included in the “DIGITAL GOVERNANCE SDP 2021-2025”.
Who are the potential beneficiaries of the Programme “Aid to providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting for the production and distribution of audiovisual works of cultural nature on issues of public interest via the internet on demand, free of charge”?
Beneficiaries of the Programme are private providers of national free-to-air digital television broadcasting via the On Demand television service and they meet the eligibility criteria detailed in Section 2.1 of the Programme Call.
What is the application period for the Programme “Aid to providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting for the production and distribution of audiovisual works of cultural nature on issues of public interest via the internet on demand, free of charge”?
Applications for funding can be submitted by interested businesses from Monday 03 November 2025, to Friday 27 February 2026 at 17:00, in printed form at the headquarters of Information Society S.A. (194 Syggrou Ave., P.C. 17671, Kallithea).
When is a work considered have content of cultural nature?
The content will only relate to works of a cultural nature, in the form of documentaries and other eligible audiovisual works, in the field of culture,
- namely documentaries and other audiovisual works to promote culture, history and truth.
And the topics they will cover will include, but shall not be limited to, areas such as:
- Demographic issue / Equality: It concerns boosting population, addressing low birth rates, the opportunities and challenges of multiculturalism and promoting gender equality.
- Health: It concerns disease prevention, promoting healthy habits, addressing pandemics, mental health and raising awareness of rare or serious diseases.
- Public safety: It concerns crime prevention, information on the dangers of the Internet, guidance to the public on addressing the risks, campaigns to increase road safety and promote cooperation between citizens and security authorities.
- Civil protection: It concerns preventing and managing natural disasters, emergency response, raising awareness of climate change and environmental protection.
- Emergencies: It concerns the prevention and management of emergencies, the response to emergencies, the awareness of citizens for such cases.
All of the above categories must be of a purely cultural nature, as clearly defined in section 6.1 of the Programme Call regarding cultural compatibility.
What activities are supported in the context of the Programme “Aid to providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting for the production and distribution of audiovisual works of cultural nature on issues of public interest via the internet on demand, free of charge”?
The following Activities (A) are supported in the context of the investment plans:
- A.1. Production of audiovisual works: This action relates to the production of eligible audiovisual works. Please note that the beneficiary may include more than one audiovisual work in its proposal. The aid is not intended exclusively for specific production activities or for individual parts of the production value chain.
- A.2. Distribution of audiovisual works: This action relates to the distribution of the above audiovisual works on an on-demand channel of television services to be made available for this purpose. It also relates to the promotion cost of the above audiovisual works.
In order to ensure each aid is necessary and serves as an incentive to develop the activities referred to in this Action, investments which the beneficiary would in any case have developed under the prevailing market conditions are not eligible.
For this reason, an incentive effect shall be deemed to exist where the beneficiary has submitted a written application for aid in the context of this action, containing all the information referred to in Article 6(2) of Law 651/2014, namely (a) the name and size of the enterprise; (b) a description of the project, including the start and end dates; (c) the location of the project; (d) a list of project costs; (e) type of aid (grant, loan, guarantee, refundable advance, capital contribution or other) and the amount of public funding required for the project before the start of works on the project or the activity. The start of work is considered to be, in accordance with point 23 of Article 2 of EU Reg. 651/2014, “the first date between either the start of construction work on the investment or the first legally binding commitment to order equipment or other commitment that makes the investment irreversible. The purchase of land and preparatory work, such as obtaining permits and preparation of feasibility studies, are not considered to be the start of work. For acquisitions, “start of work” means the time of acquisition of the assets directly linked to the acquired establishment”.
What are the eligible costs in the context of the Programme “Aid to providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting for the production and distribution of audiovisual works of cultural nature on issues of public interest via the internet on demand, free of charge”?
The eligible production and distribution costs under the EU Reg. 651/2014 are broken down as follows:
- CC1. Third Party Services
Costs for activities within the physical object of the Project and entrusted by the beneficiary through a service contract (subcontracting) to natural persons or legal persons.
Staff costs, consumables, costs of instruments and equipment, Digea services to secure the provision and distribution of 24-hour on-demand services, commissions, compensations and other remunerations (but only those, or a proportion of those, which proven to relate to the operation, provision and distribution and provision of the Channel) may be included.
- CC2 – Staff costs
This category includes remuneration for staff to the extent employed in the context of the implementation of the project. These costs relate to:
CC2.1. the beneficiary’s existing staff to the extent employed in the project and are linked to the beneficiary by employment relationship (full-time or part-time employment contract of indefinite duration, fixed-term employment contract);
CC2.2. new staff required for the implementation of the project and employed on a full-time or part-time contract
CC2.3 natural persons employed on a works contract or service provision.
Where staff are also employed on other projects within the framework of the provision of their services, the costs must be calculated in proportion to their employment on the specific audiovisual work.
- CC3 – Additional overheads
The following are included:
CC3.1. Consumables. The sub-category includes expenditure for materials, consumables, supplies and related products acquired to meet needs directly related to the implementation of the project.
CC3.2. Other operating costs. Other overheads and operating costs that do not fall into the above categories and are necessary for the implementation of the project, according to appropriate documentation and in proportion to the specific investment plan.
- CC4 – Costs of equipment
Eligible are the costs to the extent and for as long as they are used for the project. Where instruments and equipment are not used for the project throughout their lifetime, only depreciation costs calculated on the basis of generally accepted accounting principles shall be considered eligible. Software costs also fall into this category.
Where equipment is also used on other projects within the framework of the provision of their services, the costs must be calculated in proportion to its use on the specific audiovisual work.
VAT is an eligible cost in the context of the Programme and is included in the supported budget of the investment plans submitted, unless it is recoverable under national legislation (see Art. 7 (1) of EC 651/2014).
- CC5. – Distribution Costs
Costs relating to the value of commercial air time for the distribution and promotion of audiovisual works produced. Documentation of such costs shall be carried out via relevant supporting documents.
The total of the action categories may include the total of the cost categories.
All eligible costs must correspond to market prices and be supported by respective supporting documents for those costs.
What is the implementation timeline of the works and the maximum amount of aid?
The works proposed for aid in the context of the Programme may have a budget of up to EUR 6,500,000.00 for a project duration of twelve (12) months.
The aid intensity is set to 50 % of the eligible costs.
If the proposal under consideration relates to the creation of a difficult audiovisual work within the meaning of Article 2(140) of the GBER , the aid intensity is 100% of the eligible costs of the project in accordance with Article 54(7b) of the GBER.
In particular, audiovisual works must meet at least one of the following conditions to qualify as a difficult audiovisual work, namely:
- It is a director’s first or second work.
- It is a work with a budget of up to EUR one million (1,000,000.000) (this refers to each work and not to the total budget of the audiovisual works to be produced in the context of the project)
- It is a short film or documentary.
- It has limited potential for commercial exploitation
Programme Help Desk
Contact number: +30 2131300850 (MON-FRI, office hours: 09:00-17:00), and at hbb-tv@ktpae.gr.
Current Status
The current call is: “Programme Call “Aid to providers of national free-to-air television broadcasting for the production and distribution of audiovisual works of cultural nature on issues of public interest via the internet on demand, free of charge”.
The periods for submitting Applications for Funding is open from 3/11/2025 to 27/2/2026 at 17:00.
All decisions of the programme are available in the “RELEVANT ANNOUNCEMENTS” tab of this page.
*Last update: 10-12-2025
