RIGA, Oct 9 (LETA) - In the coming years, Latvia's public service broadcaster, which has been established by merging Latvian Television (LTV) and Latvian Radio, will set up regional studios in Daugavpils and Liepaja, Janis Siksnis, chair of the Public Electronic Mass Media Council (SEPLP), told the Saeima Subcommittee for Media Policy on Wednesday.

The studio in Daugavpils will be set up next year, while the studio in Liepaja will be established in 2027. 

In the meeting with lawmakers, Siksnis revealed that the Latvian Radio studio in Rezekne will be left to the public media, while the studio in Daugavpils will be developed primarily for television needs. It will be a multimedia studio from which radio will also be broadcast, Siksnis said.

Siksnis noted that the studio in Daugavpils is something conceptually new, a very important and complex task in terms of its creation, finding staff and creating content.

"It is a multi-dimensional task, given the great diversity of Latgale - both ethnic and cultural, and with the great influence, unfortunately, of Russian disinformation - it will be a special story," Siksnis said, adding that attention will be paid to news content, as well as content in the Latgalian language.

Siksnis told LETA that the funds needed to set up the Daugavpils studio are earmarked in next year's budget and no additional funding will be requested.

The total funding available for the public service broadcaster is EUR 70.35 million in 2025, EUR 61.65 million in 2026, and 61.41 million in 2027 and 2028.

In early April 2024, the merger of Latvian Radio and Latvian Television was launched, with the two state-owned companies merging to form LSM (Latvijas Sabiedriskais Medijs; Latvian Public Service Media), which is due to start operations on January 1, 2025.