Italian television and web productions to get tax credit

Culture minister aims to 'jump start' the industry

(ANSA) - New York, June 6 - Television fiction series, documentaries, animated series and web productions are now included in the Italian culture ministry's tax credit with the goal of "jump starting" the industry, Culture Minister Dario Franceschini announced on Friday. "Extending tax advantages to fiction series will strengthen independent productions and will be further incentive for investments by television stations," Franceschini said following a meeting with Marco Follini, newly elected president of the Television Producers Association APT. "An intervention will serve to jump start the industry, attract foreign investment and facilitate the process of production internationalization and innovation", the minister added.

According to Eleonora Andreatta, director of Italian television station Rai Fiction, the credit will encourage quality productions, artistic talent and even tourism, while making the flailing Italian television industry more internationally competitive. "It may also make the our country competitive again at the European level, attracting foreign productions, with positive effects not only for industry employment, but also for the image of the territory, lifestyle, artistic assets, and therefore general tourism and exports", Andreatta said. The television and web inclusion comes on the heels of the ministry's May announcement that it was doubling a tax credit for foreign filmmakers producing in Italy.