Culture Minister Regulation No. 4, accessibility requirements for audiovisual media services: subtitles, sign-language interpretation, audio description and audio subtitles

Regulation No. 4 of the Culture Minister is made under section 23(1^1) of the Media Services Act. Section 1(1) sets accessibility requirements for the audiovisual media services of Eesti Rahvusringhääling, for the on-demand audiovisual media services offered by electronic communications undertakings that provide audiovisual media services, and for the two most-watched programs of private television service providers.

Section 1(2) has TTJA name the two private programs for the next calendar year and publish them on its website by 1 December, on the basis of the programs' average viewing over ten months of the current calendar year. Section 1(3) applies the requirements, for the electronic communications undertakings and the two private programs, to Estonian-language programs whose first showing is after 1 January 2027.

Section 1(4) provides that the requirements do not apply to programs and program catalogues aimed at a specific narrower target group whose main content has features such as little or no verbal content, an exclusively musical or visual content or another specific thematic focus that makes applying the requirements unjustified. Section 2 requires news programs, current affairs programs and election programs to be subtitled for at least 70 percent of their weekly volume.

Section 3 requires Eesti Rahvusringhääling to provide sign-language interpretation for twelve listed national events and addresses, to broadcast at least one "Aktuaalne kaamera" news program a day with sign language, and to tell viewers accessibly in the program guide and the catch-up environment that sign language is available.

Section 4 requires Eesti Rahvusringhääling to provide audio description for the Estonian Republic anniversary concert-performance and the Estonian general dance festival and youth dance festival. Section 5 requires audio description, where a program has it, to be available together with the program on every platform that carries it, and viewers to be told accessibly in the program guide and the catch-up environment that it exists.

Section 6 requires every subtitled program of Eesti Rahvusringhääling to have audio subtitles. Section 7 requires a service aimed specifically at the hard of hearing and the visually impaired to ensure that the accessibility elements are delivered completely and in sufficient quality, with sound and video synchronized, and that the user can adjust display and use.

Section 8 provides that where Eesti Rahvusringhääling broadcasts an event and meets the accessibility requirements, another media service provider that carries the same event need not meet them. Section 9 requires subtitles, sign-language interpretation or audio description to be added when Estonian films and series made with Estonian state funding that have them are shown or transmitted, and, where possible, for other Estonian-language films and series.

Section 10 provides that the share of programs with selectable subtitles rises to 95 percent by 2030 in the programs covered, and that the share of programs, films and series with audio description in the programs of Eesti Rahvusringhääling rises by at least 3 percent by 2028 and at least 5 percent by 2030 compared with 2025. The Regulation was made on 26 February 2026, published on 27 February 2026 and took effect on 2 March 2026.

Section 54(1) of the Media Services Act makes TTJA the authority that supervises compliance with that Act and the legal acts made under it, apart from sections 15 and 19^2. Section 56 of the Media Services Act sets the ceiling of the penalty payment for a precept that is not complied with at EUR 15,000 and, where a precept is repeatedly not complied with, at EUR 30,000.