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Service Contract

As already mentioned, as regards the regulation of the sector, the public service concession holder's broadcasting activity is regulated not only by the Law, but by the Service Contract.

In accordance with the Service Contract, the offering of quality programming, which is to be in line with Italian values and ideals, as well as with audience sensitivities and the interest of minors, is characterized by a range of content and efficiency in production that gives the public a positive image of the public service provided, and this in terms of the level of programming, the appropriateness of the mission that it is required to fulfil as compared with commercial broadcasting, and the cost of the licence fee.

To that end, the following is a list of the primary responsibilities:
. the freedom, completeness, objectivity, and pluralism of information;
. safeguarding the national identity, as well as local identities and the identities of the minority language groups;
. the nation's political and economic developments and the challenges of modernization;
. the developments in political and economic relations with European partners and the dissemination of the key aspects of their cultures;
. providing information on the politics, economies, and societies of non-EU countries, particularly the world's least-developed nations both economically and socially;
. promoting culture, history, traditions, and artistic heritage;
. respect for the environment;
. representing the reality of daily living in Italy;
. promoting employment and employment conditions;
. the issues of civil law, solidarity, feminism, equal opportunities, and integration;
. public safety, reporting violence, crime, breakdown of the social fabric and social marginalisation;
. focus on the family;
. the protection of minors, the elderly, and other groups in need of protection.

The new guidelines relating to the Service Contract issued by the Italian Communications Authority in agreement with the Ministry for Economic Development for the 2010-2012 term fall within this framework.

The following obligations have been established:
. offering the public with balanced, quality programming;
. representing every territorial, social and cultural aspect of Italy;
. promoting education and a mental aptitude towards learning and assessment;
. stimulating interest in culture and creativity, also making the most of the nation's artistic heritage;
. guaranteeing fee use of quality content;
. promoting the knowledge of Italy in the world and a non-superficial knowledge of the international context in Italy;
. promoting the dissemination of the constitutional principles, the awareness of public rights and the growth of the sense of belonging of all Italians to the European Union;
. reflecting cultural and multiethnic diversity with a view to integration and social cohesion;
. extending the benefits of new technologies to as many people as possible, in an innovative and competitive context

In short, Rai is required to fulfil more public service tasks than in the past, with an inevitable rise in costs.

Lastly, Rai's ethical code must acknowledge the Code of selfregulation on matters of representing legal issued in broadcasts, signed by the concession holder on 21 May 2009, the "Media and minors" code, as renamed by Presidential Decree no. 72 of 14 May 2007, the Code on sporting commentary broadcasts, pursuant to article 34 of the Consolidate Broadcasting Law, acknowledged with decree 21 January 2008, as well as a Code of good conduct which contains specific instructions for the various situations. The service contract must impose the respect of the Ethical Code.