In an effort by lawmakers to bring Spain’s legal framework up to date with the new dynamics of the audiovisual market—which has been significantly affected by technological advancements and the emergence of new players— Royal Decree 444/2024 (“RD”) came into effect on May 2; it was approved on April 30 by the Council of Ministers and regulates the requirements for determining who qualifies as a “user of special relevance” on video-sharing platforms, also known as influencers.
The regulation also aims to align with Directive (EU) 2018/1808, which, while not explicitly including influencers, gave Member States the freedom to regulate this category, recognizing their growing importance in the dissemination of audiovisual and advertising content. This inclusion seeks to ensure, among other things, the protection of users—especially minors—from content that is potentially harmful and could affect their physical, mental, or moral development.
Specifically, the Royal Decree states that individuals or legal entities that use video-sharing services and meet the requirements set forth in Article 94.2 of Law 13/2022 of July 7, the General Law on Audiovisual Communication, are considered users of particular significance; therefore, the rights and obligations under this regulation apply to these entities.
Criteria for Being Considered an Influencer
Among the criteria for being considered a user of special significance are, first, that annual gross income be equal to or greater than 300,000 euros in the previous calendar year, derived exclusively from the users’ activity across all video-sharing services on the platforms they use. Additionally, they must have a substantial audience on the platforms, a requirement that is deemed met when, in the previous calendar year, they reached 1 million followers on a single video-sharing platform or 2 million followers across all platforms, and the user has posted or shared 24 or more videos per year.
These users must register with the State Registry of Audiovisual Communication Service Providers within two months of the Royal Decree taking effect. In this way, their obligations are brought into line with those of other audiovisual operators.
In summary, the Royal Decree is an important step toward modern regulation of the audiovisual market in our country, addressing the challenges and opportunities presented by the digital age and ensuring that both new and traditional market players fulfill their responsibilities by protecting the general public from content that promotes violence, pornography, terrorism, or hate, complying with regulations on the broadcast of commercial audiovisual material they advertise, and ensuring the protection of minors and limiting their exposure to content that could negatively affect their physical, moral, or mental development.
Inés de Casas, Senior Associate at ELZABURU