Netflix and Amazon, get ready for content quotas in Europe - CNET

If you're not already a fan of British period dramas and Scandinavian noir thrillers, this may be the time to get on board.

On-demand video services including Amazon and Netflix may soon need to adhere to rules that dictate how much of their European catalogs must be occupied by European films and TV shows, according to the Daily Mail.

A European Commission proposal due to be announced next week will include an obligation for on-demand services to dedicate a 20 percent share of space in their offerings to homegrown content, said documents seen by the newspaper.

"While we cannot go into details [regarding possible quotas] at this stage, we can say that the proposal will notably strengthen the promotion of European works' obligations for on-demand services," a Commission spokeswoman said Friday in a statement.

Many European countries already have quotas regarding content made within the EU, but the lack of EU-level rules means there are massive variations between member states. Some countries may have up to 60 percent European films in their catalogs; others may have only 10 percent, according to the Commission. A move from the EU to put an inteational quota in place could be seen as an attempt to harmonize the rules, but overall its mission is to bolster the European film industry.