European Broadcasting Union facts for kids
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Union européenne de radio-télévision
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Logo used since 2012
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Countries with one or more members are in dark blue. Associated members in light blue.
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| Predecessor | International Broadcasting Union |
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| Formation | 12 February 1950 |
| Type | Union of broadcasting organisations |
| Headquarters | Geneva, Switzerland |
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Membership
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Official language
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English, French |
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President
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Delphine Ernotte |
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Director-General
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Noel Curran |
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is a big group of public TV and radio companies. These companies are from countries in the European Broadcasting Area or those that are part of the Council of Europe. Think of it like a club for broadcasters!
The EBU started in 1950 and has its main office in Geneva, Switzerland. It helps its members share TV and radio shows, especially live broadcasts, using its own special networks called Eurovision and Euroradio. They also run a daily news exchange where members can share breaking news videos.
The EBU also creates and organizes many popular events that its members can join. The most famous one is the Eurovision Song Contest. They also organize debates and other fun competitions.
What the EBU Does
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EBU members are public broadcasting companies. This means they are set up by law to serve everyone, not just a few people. They are independent and don't take sides in politics.
Members of the EBU come from all over, from Iceland in the north to Egypt in the south, and from Ireland in the west to Azerbaijan in the east. They even have "associate members" from countries like the United States.
Being an EBU member comes with many cool benefits:
- They get access to lots of content, like exclusive sports events, news, music, and even kids' shows.
- The EBU speaks up for its members in places like Brussels. They make sure the rules for broadcasters are fair and helpful.
- Members can share ideas and learn from each other. They do this through meetings, workshops, and training.
- The EBU is a hub for new technology. Experts help members understand and use the latest broadcasting tools.
The most well-known event the EBU puts on is the Eurovision Song Contest. But they also organize other fun contests like the Eurovision Dance Contest and the Junior Eurovision Song Contest.
For radio, they have things like Euroclassic Notturno, which is an overnight classical music show. They also have special music days, like Christmas music relays from different countries.
Many EBU broadcasters work together to show big sports events, including the FIFA World Cup. Another yearly event broadcast across Europe by the EBU is the Vienna New Year's Concert.
Eurovision Media Services is the business part of the EBU. It helps many media companies and sports groups around the world with their broadcasts.
The Famous Tune
You might know the EBU's theme music! It's played before and after many EBU broadcasts, including the Eurovision Song Contest. The tune is called Prelude to Te Deum by Marc-Antoine Charpentier.
History of the EBU
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The EBU was created after an older group called the International Broadcasting Union (IBU). The IBU started in 1925, but it faced problems during World War II. After the war, the Allies didn't trust it anymore.
In the late 1940s, people wanted a new organization to manage radio frequencies in Europe. There were disagreements, especially about how many votes each country would get. Some countries worried that the Soviet Union would have too much power.
Finally, on 13 February 1950, the European Broadcasting Union was formed. It had 23 members from different countries. A key difference was that the EBU's members were broadcasters, not governments. This made meetings more friendly and professional.
The BBC from the UK played a big role in the early days of the EBU. In 1951, West Germany joined. The EBU also worked with a similar organization from Eastern Europe until they merged in 1993.
Technical Work
The EBU's technical team helps its members with all the fast changes in technology. They share information through conferences and magazines.
They also encourage members to work together and share what they know. This way, everyone can achieve more than they could alone. They have groups that study specific technical problems.
The EBU really believes in using "open standards." These are like common rules that help different products work together. For example, they helped develop standards for digital audio and video. This makes it easier for broadcasters to share shows and for people to watch them.
Some important things the EBU has helped create include:
- The AES/EBU digital audio system, which helps send clear sound.
- Standards for digital video, making sure TV pictures look good.
- RDS, which shows song titles or station names on your car radio.
- Rules for how loud TV and radio shows should be, so you don't get blasted by commercials!
They also helped develop:
- Digital radio (DAB), for clearer radio sound.
- DVB, for digital TV.
- Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM), for digital radio on older frequencies.
Members
The EBU has many members from different countries. As of March 2024, there are 68 broadcasting companies from 56 countries that are full members. These are mainly public broadcasters in Europe and nearby regions.
Current Members
Some examples of current members include:
Suspended Members
Sometimes, members can be suspended. This means they temporarily lose their membership rights. For example, broadcasters from Belarus and Russia are currently suspended.
Past Members
Over the years, some broadcasting organizations have left the EBU or merged with others. For example, Czechoslovak Television was a member until 1992.
Associate Members
The EBU also has "associate members." These are broadcasting groups from countries outside the main European Broadcasting Area. They don't get all the same benefits as full members, but they can still work with the EBU. As of December 2023, there were 31 associate members from 20 countries.
Some well-known associate members are:
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation (Australia)
- Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (Canada)
- NHK (Japan)
- CBS and NBC (United States)
Even though associate members usually can't join Eurovision events, there are some special exceptions. For example, Australia and Kazakhstan have been invited to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest or Junior Eurovision Song Contest.
Past Associate Members
Many other organizations have been associate members in the past, from countries all over the world like Argentina, Brazil, India, and Mexico.
Approved Participant Members
There's also a special status called "Approved Participants." These are groups that don't fit the other membership types but still do broadcasting work for the EBU. This status usually lasts about five years. Examples include Arte and Euronews.
Organized Events
The EBU works with host broadcasters to put on many exciting competitions and events.
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is a huge international music competition held every year. EBU members send a singer or group to represent their country. It started in 1956 in Lugano, Switzerland. The first contest had seven countries, each with two songs. Since 1957, each country sends just one song. It's the EBU's most famous show!
Let the Peoples Sing
Let the Peoples Sing is a choir competition that happens every two years. Choirs are chosen from recordings sent in by EBU radio members. The final show is broadcast live, and the best choir wins the Silver Rose Bowl.
Jeux sans frontières
Jeux sans frontières (which means "Games without frontiers" or "Games Without Borders") was a popular TV game show across Europe. It ran from 1965 to 1999 and was organized by the EBU. Teams from different countries competed in fun, often silly, challenges.
Eurovision Young Musicians
The Eurovision Young Musicians is a competition for talented young musicians aged 12 to 21. It's held every two years and is a very important music contest internationally. The first one was in 1982 in Manchester, United Kingdom.
Eurovision Young Dancers
The Eurovision Young Dancers was a dance competition shown on TV across Europe. It was held every two years, similar to the Song Contest. Dancers aged 16 to 21, who were not professional, would compete. The first competition was in 1985 in Reggio Emilia, Italy.
Euroclassic Notturno
Euroclassic Notturno is a six-hour block of classical music. It uses live recordings from EBU members, not commercial CDs. This music is sent by satellite to broadcasters for their overnight classical music shows.
Junior Eurovision Song Contest
The Junior Eurovision Song Contest is an international song competition for younger singers. It started in 2003 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Sixteen countries took part in the first show. Like the main Eurovision, each country sends one song.
Eurovision Dance Contest
The Eurovision Dance Contest was an international dancing competition. It was held in 2007 and 2008 in the United Kingdom. It's different from the Eurovision Young Dancers Competition.
Eurovision Magic Circus Show
The Eurovision Magic Circus Show was an entertainment show organized by the EBU. It happened in Geneva in 2010, 2011, and 2012. Children aged 7–14 from eight countries performed amazing circus acts.
Eurovision Choir
The first Eurovision Choir competition took place in 2017 in Riga. Non-professional choirs chosen by EBU members competed. Slovenia's Carmen Manet was the first winner.
European Sports Championships
The European Sports Championships is a big event that brings together several major European sports. In 2018, different sports like athletics, swimming, cycling, and golf held their championships at the same time in Berlin and Glasgow.
See also
- African Union of Broadcasting
- Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union
- Caribbean Broadcasting Union
- International Telecommunication Union
- North American Broadcasters Association
- Public Broadcasting System
