A programme, (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Programme’), is hereby established to encourage the development, distribution and promotion of European audiovisual works within and outside the Community, to run from 1 January 2001 to F131 December 2006 , for the purpose of strengthening the European audiovisual industry.

Beneficiaries of Community support shall provide a substantial proportion of funding, which may include any other public funding. Community funding shall not exceed 50 % of the cost of operations. However, in the cases expressly provided for in the Annex, this proportion may reach as much as 60 % of the cost of operations.

The financial reference amount for implementation of the Programme for the period referred to in Article 1(1) shall be EUR  F1453,60 million. An indicative breakdown of that amount by sector is set out in section 1.5 of the Annex. The annual appropriations shall be authorised by the budgetary authority within the limits of the financial perspective.

Without prejudice to the agreements and conventions to which the Community is a contracting party, enterprises benefiting from the Programme must be owned and continue to be owned, whether directly or by majority participation, by Member States and/or by nationals of Member States.

The measures necessary for the implementation of this Decision concerning all the other matters shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 8(3). This procedure shall also apply to the final choice of technical assistance offices.

Technical assistance shall be governed by the provisions adopted pursuant to the Financial Regulation.

The Commission shall give the European Parliament and the Council regular and timely notice of the implementation of this Decision, in particular the use of the available resources.

The Commission shall be assisted by a committee.

Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 4 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.

The period laid down in Article 4(3) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be set at two months.

Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 3 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.

The committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

When implementing the Programme, the Commission shall, in close cooperation with the Member States, ensure general consistency and complementarity with other Community policies, programmes and actions that impinge upon the audiovisual field.

The Commission shall ensure that there is effective liaison between this Programme and programmes and actions in the audiovisual field being carried out under Community cooperation with non-member countries and the relevant international organisations.

Pilot projects shall be implemented throughout the duration of the Programme aimed at improving access to European audiovisual content and at taking advantage of opportunities arising from the development and introduction of new and innovative technologies, including digitisation and new methods of dissemination.

In selecting the pilot projects to be implemented, the Commission shall be advised by technical consultation groups composed of experts designated by the Member States. The list of potential projects shall be submitted to the Committee regularly in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 8(2).

The Programme shall be open to the participation of the associated countries of Central and Eastern Europe in accordance with the conditions laid down in the association agreements or their additional protocols relating to participation in Community programmes concluded or to be concluded with those countries.

The Programme shall be open to the participation of Turkey and those EFTA countries which are members of the EEA Agreement, on the basis of supplementary appropriations, in accordance with the procedures to be agreed with those countries.

The Programme shall be open to the participation of the countries which are parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Transfrontier Television other than those referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, on the basis of supplementary appropriations, in accordance with conditions to be established in the agreements between the interested parties.

The opening-up of the Programme to the European third countries referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall be subject to prior examination as to the compatibility of their national legislation with the Community acquis, including the second subparagraph of Article 6(1) of Directive 89/552/EEC.

The Programme shall also be open to cooperation with other third countries on the basis of supplementary appropriations and the specific arrangements, including cost sharing under agreed procedures, to be established in agreements between the interested parties. The European third countries referred to in paragraph 3 which do not wish to participate fully in the Programme may be eligible for cooperation with the Programme under the conditions set out in this paragraph.

The Commission shall guarantee that measures taken under this Decision are subject to prior appraisal, and to subsequent monitoring and evaluation. It shall ensure the accessibility of the programme and the transparency of its implementation.

After the completion of the projects, the Commission shall evaluate the manner in which they have been carried out and the impact of their implementation, in order to assess whether the original objectives have been achieved.

After two years' implementation, the Commission shall, after bringing the matter before the Committee provided for in Article 8, present to the European Parliament, the Council and the Economic and Social Committee an evaluation report on the impact and effectiveness of the Programme on the basis of the results obtained. This report shall be accompanied, if need be, by any proposals for adjustments.

On completion of the Programme the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament, the Council and the Economic and Social Committee a detailed report on the implementation and results of the Programme.