The owner of TV Pink, Zeljko Mitrovic, says that "after the most difficult and complicated year in its history, TV Pink is entering a period of more stable functioning thanks to reforms introduced in the company during the last six months". Mitrovic says that Pink has started updating and purchasing the best available broadcasting equipment necessary for digitalization. "I have made a strategic decision to withdraw from all external operations and to work in the field of TV and programme production only", he adds. Mitrovic claims that all late salaries will be paid until December 15.
(Blic, UNS 23.11.2011)

Letter from Aleksandar Tijanic to employees in the public service broadcaster: Since European practice recommends a system of double financing of public service broadcasters via both TV fees and marketing revenues, the RTS has been projected to have a budget of around 100 million euros, taking into account its size and legal obligations. Only in a single year (2008) since the introduction of the TV fee we have had such a budget. Already in 2009 our income amounted to 87 million euros, and in 2010 it amounted to 81.5 million euros. This means that more than 40 million euros was missing in two years. Croatian Radio-Television (HRT), which is similar to our size, today has a budget that is twice the size of ours. Since we have been achieving marketing revenue of about 22-25 million euros for years, we need to collect TV fees in the amount of 80 million euros, i.e. to achieve around 75% of collection. However, the percentage of collection of the TV fee has dropped to 41% and it is estimated that this fall will continue. As a result of this, we are forced to decide on the following steps:

• To immediately reduce the total salaries of highest-paid employees by further 15% (at the beginning of the year they were already reduced by 10%);
• To continue cutting all expenses;
• To reduce the range of programmes and temporarily slow down the production of three new domestic series with high budgets;
• To hire 100-150 part-time workers after New Year (out of 500) and to dismiss the rest of them because law does not allow implementation of social programs if RTS employs part-time workers. It should be emphasized that these workers are doing excellent job despite the fact that their fees are already three months late;
• To send 500 permanently employed workers on forced leave.
• To begin the third cycle of the social program for around 500 employees. We estimate that there are around 800 employees in the RTS that do not fulfill the criteria required by RTS. Their dismissal would reduce annual expenses by around 10 million euros.
  (UNS, 30.11.2011)

At the end of the letter addressed to his employees and posted on all bulletin boards in the RTS building, Aleksandar Tijanic says: "I am asking you to act responsibly and to have understanding for the difficult steps that we will take. We must make a clean brake from the tradition of the old, state-owned RTS, according to which someone else would always pay our bills. Full mobilization of all institutions and editors in our organization is urgently required. Any behavior of the employees deviating from these demands I will consider to constitute a request for resignation and I will accept every such resignation."
(Danas – special supplement Forum, 30.11.2011)

In their reaction to the Report prepared by the general director of Radio-Television Serbia (RTS) that was posted on bulletin boards, the Committees of the Independent Trade Union Nezavisnost have expressed their concern about the survival of the media company and corresponding jobs and salaries.
(UNS, 29.11.2011)

RTS employees received their October salaries today. Previously, the financial department of the RTS had informed the employees that "a loan was taken in order to enable payment of October salaries, in accordance with instructions issued by the general director, Aleksandar Tijanic".
(UNS, 5 December 2011)