DR uses public service contract as protection in case of login requirements
If DR is to be able to comply with the obligations in the public service contract, a login requirement on DRTV is necessary.
This is stated in a response from DR to the Danish Data Protection Agency, which Ritzau has been granted access to.
The Authority has demanded answers from DR to a number of follow-up questions, after DR also sent a response to the Authority in May with arguments for the login solution.
This happened in the wake of a number of complaints to the Data Protection Agency about DR's requirement to log in with an email and username if users want to watch other content in addition to the live channels from DRTV.
The criticism is that DR, which this year receives 3.7 billion kroner paid through taxes, is also forcing users to log in in order to access what they have already paid for.
In addition, the criticism has been that DR's requirement is not about a better user experience, but about extracting more statistical information from users.
The Consumer Council Think and Prose, the trade union of IT professionals, has criticized the login requirement.
DR writes in its latest response that a modern streaming offer does not only consist of making content available.
- But also in delivering a coherent and individual user experience that matches consumers' expectations, says the response to the Data Protection Authority.
Here DR refers - as it does several times in the overall response - to the public service contract.
Specifically, to the section in the latest contract that covers from 2024 to 2026, where the following is stated:
- DRTV is being developed continuously as a separate offer in its own right with a view to presenting an attractive and relevant streaming offer that takes advantage of digital opportunities.
DR emphasizes in its response that the login requirement is not a desire for insight into users' habits, but rather a technical "prerequisite for being able to deliver functionalities that users expect from a modern streaming offer".
In particular, DRTV's login enables, for example, the "continue watching" function across devices.
The Danish Data Protection Agency, which oversees compliance with citizens' data protection, is investigating the necessity of collecting personal data from DRTV's users.
DR writes in its response that "no sensitive personal data can be derived from the login alone".
The TV station also writes that the processing of personal data is based on the GDPR - the EU's General Data Protection Regulation.
The public service channel emphasizes that it does not sell portfolios of personal data, and that DR has no commercial activities in connection with the processing of personal data.
- DR does not pass on personal data in exchange for other information.
The Danish Data Protection Agency informs Ritzau that, based on DR's latest response, it is investigating the matter further. The supervisory authority cannot provide information at this time on what the possible outcome of the investigation may be and when it is expected.
/ritzau/
