The EBU Technical Committee has released a position statement calling on the media technology industry to support content provenance and authenticity standards such as C2PA to help audiences trace the origin of content.

The TC also states that the EBU should represent the specific needs of its Members in the governance of content provenance, as part of a multi-faceted approach to enhance media integrity and combat the growing problem of disinformation.

The EBU Technical Committee highlighted the growing threat posed by fake media content, citing a lack of strong commitment and concerted efforts within the media industry to address the issue.

The position statement outlines several key intentions and calls to action:

  • For the EBU to champion the specific needs of its Members in the governance frameworks related to content provenance and authenticity, and to establish a unified approach.
  • For collaboration among technology companies, content creators, publishers, distributors, regulatory bodies, and international organizations, including EBU, in order to further develop and implement open standards such as C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity).
  • The support of open standards, ensuring interoperability between vendors to maximize the effectiveness of relevant mitigation technologies.
  • The support and launch of public education campaigns, to raise awareness about the importance of content provenance and authenticity, equipping audiences with the tools to critically assess credible sources.

The EBU TC’s position underscores the need for a concerted and cooperative effort to safeguard content integrity in a public sphere that is increasingly challenged by fake news and disinformation.

Interested product owners, specialists or developers working for EBU member organizations are invited to join the new ‘C2PA Workflows’ expert group, created by EBU to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and to inform and drive the implementation of C2PA technology in relevant media systems and workflows.

C2PA has broad support, but specifics are still in development and implementation are only starting to appear. The EBU will be showing a demonstration involving several steps from capture to publishing at IBC in September (EBU stand 10.D21).

All interested parties, including technology vendor representatives and other stakeholders are also invited to join a dedicated public C2PA meetup held by EBU at IBC 2024. The meetup is scheduled on Saturday 14 September at 14:00 CEST, also at EBU stand 10.D21.