NUNS: Yettel dropping N1 and Nova from packages threatens media pluralism and public interest

The Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia, known as NUNS or IJAS, says Yettel’s decision to remove N1 and Nova from some subscriber packages is more than a routine business change. Under the pilot project, customers would lose access to the two channels while paying about 2.5 euros less.

NUNS says the decision comes in a highly concentrated media-distribution market. It cited first-quarter 2026 data from Serbia’s communications regulator showing Telekom Srbija Group with 62.3 percent of subscribers, SBB with 29 percent and Yettel with 5.4 percent. Following the integration of Yettel and SBB, NUNS said the market is effectively concentrated between two major business groups, including majority state-owned Telekom Srbija.

The association warned that distributors’ decisions about news-channel availability can affect outlets’ reach, financial sustainability and the position of the journalists they employ. It also questioned Yettel’s explanation that the pilot aims to improve the user experience. If N1 and Nova were selected for removal in advance, while customers were not offered the same choice for other news channels, NUNS said it would be difficult to know whether the project was testing preferences or simply whether subscribers would accept a cheaper package without those two outlets.

NUNS placed the decision within wider changes in Serbia’s media and distribution markets. It referred to the removal of N1 and Nova from Total TV after Telekom Srbija took control, as well as earlier discussions about reducing the operations of United Media outlets in Serbia. The association also pointed to announced elections and the importance of access to diverse sources of information during the pre-election period.

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In such an environment, distributors’ decisions concerning the availability of news channels cannot be viewed solely as private business decisions. They may directly affect the reach of media outlets, their economic sustainability and, consequently, the position of the journalists and other media workers they employ.