Media and Press Law

Legal structuring and regulatory map of the media project

In a new broadcast, platform or content project, the first need is not merely to prepare terms of use. Whether the activity falls within press, radio and television, on-demand broadcasting, e-commerce, advertising, personal data, intellectual property or another regulatory area should be determined according to the business model.

Scope of services:

• Review of the broadcast model, content flow, revenue sources and user roles
• Determination of editorial responsibility and effective control over content
• Separation of news, entertainment, user content, advertising and sponsorship layers
• Identification of licensing, permit, declaration, registration, notification or authorization needs
• Mapping of the responsibilities of broadcasters, producers, agencies, platforms, presenters, authors and advertisers
• Local law analysis for foreign broadcasts and platforms aimed at Türkiye
• Assessment of target-country, contract and data-transfer risks for content presented abroad from Türkiye
• Preparation of a pre-launch legal checklist and a compliance timetable

Calling a website, mobile application or social media channel “media” does not by itself determine which rules apply. The selection, ordering, cataloguing, live or on-demand delivery of content and the revenue model are assessed in concrete terms.

The activity map is not prepared only at the time of establishment. When a new medium, revenue model, country, artificial intelligence tool or data flow is added, the permit, contract and responsibility analysis is renewed.

Ongoing compliance, training and editorial policies

• Editorial legal handbook and pre-publication checklists
• Right of reply and correction, content complaint and urgent application procedures
• Advertising, sponsorship, influencer and product placement policy
• Copyright and visual-use permission matrix
• Artificial intelligence and synthetic content use policy
• Publication standards for children, victims and special-category data
• Training for journalists, editors, advertising teams and managers
• Periodic monitoring of changes in legislation and platform rules
• Sample-based review of content, contracts and processes

Legal basis: 1, 2, 3

Printed publications and internet news websites

Press activity has its own rules on the publisher, the responsible editor, the imprint, declarations, delivery, archiving, reply and correction, and civil and criminal liability. Since internet news websites were brought into the periodical publication regime, institutional and technical obligations have become important in digital publishing as well.

Scope of services:

• Legal planning of the establishment of newspapers, magazines and internet news websites
• Arrangement of the publisher, the legal-person representative, the responsible editor and editorial duties
• Review of declarations, imprint, contact details, place of publication and other mandatory information
• Display of the publication and update dates of content, and archiving and record-keeping processes
• Contracts with news agencies, columnists, photojournalists, freelancers and content providers
• Preparation of reply and correction requests, or of responses to such requests
• Preservation of the evidential value of news sources, verification records and publication decisions
• Press-based disputes over personality rights, copyright, commercial reputation and unfair competition
• Assessment of the legislation applicable to official announcements and advertisement publication

The right to publish official announcements does not arise automatically for every internet news website. The regulations of the Press Advertising Agency (Basın İlan Kurumu), the waiting period, categories and publication conditions are reviewed separately.

For reply and correction, the two-month submission period in Article 14 of the Press Law and the publication procedure, which varies by medium, are taken into account. Not every website counts as an internet news website; the nature of the site and whether the special regime applies are examined first.

Legal basis: 1

Television, radio and on-demand broadcasting services

For television, radio and on-demand broadcasting services, the company structure, broadcasting licence, transmission authorization, broadcasting principles, commercial communications, protection of children, catalogue arrangement and sanction risk should be considered together.

Scope of services:

• Classification of terrestrial, satellite, cable and internet broadcasting models
• Licence and transmission authorization processes before the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK)
• Assessment of the scope of Internet-RD, Internet-TV and Internet-IBYH
• Establishing the distinction between a media service provider and a platform operator
• Review of shareholding, company structure, management and editorial responsibility
• Broadcasting principles, protective symbols, measures for children and catalogue controls
• Review of advertising, programme sponsorship, product placement, teleshopping and covert commercial communication
• RTÜK information requests, defences, administrative fines and other sanction processes
• Regulatory dimension of licence renewal, change of activity, share transfer and company transactions
• Applications and judicial remedies against administrative acts

Licence fees and application conditions change periodically, so no fixed monetary amount is published on this page; the current RTÜK tariff and application guide on the date of the transaction are the basis.

An action against an administrative sanction under Law No. 6112 is brought within 15 days of notification, before the administrative court. An action does not automatically suspend the decision; the conditions for a stay of execution are assessed separately. The duration of a licence or other administrative act is not automatically treated as the same as the sanction period.

OTT, video platforms, live broadcasts, podcasts and web broadcasting

The legal nature of a digital broadcast is determined by the function of the service and its editorial structure rather than by the technical tool used. Not every video channel, podcast or individual live stream is automatically subject to the same licensing regime; however, responsibilities for content, advertising, personality rights, copyright and the platform contract may still arise.

Scope of services:

• Legal classification of OTT and on-demand content catalogues
• Subscription, advertising-supported, rental, purchase and mixed revenue models
• Review of live broadcasts, web television, web radio and corporate broadcasting channels
• Podcast network, presenter, guest, producer and distribution platform contracts
• User-uploaded content, moderation and notice mechanisms
• Geo-blocking, age verification, parental control and content classification
• Terms of app stores, video-sharing platforms and podcast distribution platforms
• Subscription, automatic renewal, consumer information and cancellation processes

The scope of an internet radio, television or on-demand service is examined together with personal communication, the selection and presentation of content, editorial responsibility and the function of the platform. A content licence and a broadcasting licence from RTÜK are different; obtaining one does not secure the other.

Legal basis: 2

Personality rights, private life and commercial reputation

The balance between rights over name, image, voice, honour and reputation, private life, health information, family life and economic reputation, on the one hand, and freedom of expression and press freedom, on the other, should be established on the basis of the concrete case.

Scope of services:

• Review of news, commentary, interviews, documentaries, video and social media content
• Assessment of truthfulness, apparent truthfulness, currency, public interest and the link to the expression as a whole
• Claims of interference with private life, home, family, health and communications
• Unauthorized use of photographs, video, sound recordings and personal stories
• Claims of commercial reputation concerning companies, products, brands and executives
• Legal preparation of press statements, public announcements and crisis responses
• Options for stopping, correcting or removing a publication, and for compensation
• Building the defence of lawfulness for publishers and content creators

Measures against an unlawful attack, its prevention or cessation, establishing its effects, and claims for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages are subject to separate conditions. The headline, photograph and editing are examined together with the whole report. In publications concerning companies, unfair competition and the protection of commercial reputation is also assessed separately.

Right of reply and correction

In a request for reply and correction, the content, the medium, the time limit, the competent authority and the form of publication are important. The same procedure does not apply to printed periodicals, internet news websites and radio-television broadcasts.

• Identification of the publication allegedly causing the violation and of its first publication date
• Determination of the special procedure and time limits that apply
• Preparation of the reply or correction text in terms of scope, length and connection with the publication
• Preparation of the application and of the delivery records to the publisher
• Application where the request is rejected, not published, or published contrary to procedure
• Response and defence of the publisher against unfair or disproportionate requests
• Planning of how the reply and correction relates to compensation, criminal or other applications

For a printed periodical and an internet news website, the general rule is an application to the responsible editor within two months from the date of publication. For a daily newspaper the basis is three days; for other periodicals, the first issue after three days; for an internet news website, one day. If publication is refused or the procedure is violated, a 15-day judicial application period also runs. Under the radio-television regime the request period is 60 days, the broadcaster’s publication period is seven days and the subsequent application period is ten days; the law also allows a direct application to a criminal judge of peace within the same 60-day period. The scope and length of the text, its delivery and the calculation of time limits are checked against the concrete publication.

Freedom of expression, press freedom and the balance with public interest

In media law the aim is not merely to interfere with content. Journalistic activity, criticism, scrutiny of public power, the right to receive information, artistic expression and public debate are also protected by law.

• Separation of an assertion of fact from a value judgment
• Documentation of the news source, the verification method and the effort to obtain the opposing view
• Analysis of public interest, currency and contribution to public debate
• The different expectations that apply to politicians, public officials, well-known persons and private individuals
• Compatibility of the headline, image, editing and presentation format with the content
• Presumption of innocence and the reporting of ongoing investigations or proceedings
• Protection of the identity of children, victims and vulnerable groups
• Necessity and proportionality of an interference in a democratic society
• Legal defence in favour of the publisher, journalist and content creator

Legal basis: 1, 2, 4, 5

Removal of content, access restrictions and platform applications

When a legal route for online content is determined, the phrase “content removal” alone is not sufficient. Whether the content violates private life, whether it raises a criminal allegation, an intellectual property infringement or a personality right violation, whether it is consumer or commercial communication, the position of the content and hosting providers, and the proportionality of the request are assessed separately.

Scope of services:

• Identification of URLs, accounts, shares, caches, copies and re-uploads
• Application to the content or hosting provider, or to the platform’s relevant notice channel
• Specific routes for privacy, intellectual property, personal data and criminal content
• Civil law protections, interim measures and compensation options for personality rights
• Proportionality analysis and limited interference with the unlawful part instead of the whole expression
• Determination of the competent authority and the evidence plan where urgent protection is needed
• Monitoring of copies, mirror sites and re-publication on other platforms
• Defence of freedom of expression and press freedom against requests for access restriction or removal made to the publisher

Current legal note: Article 9 of the former Law No. 5651, concerning personality rights, was annulled by the Constitutional Court, and the annulment ruling entered into force on October 10, 2024. For this reason, the phrase “content removal and access blocking by a criminal judge of peace under Article 9 of Law No. 5651” found in older pages should not be used as if it were current. In each case, under the legislation and case law in force on the date of the transaction, it is re-examined whether there is a basis in private-life, civil law, press or broadcasting law, search-result removal, platform application, intellectual property, criminal law or any other legal ground.

The route under Article 9/A of Law No. 5651, concerning the privacy of private life, is in force. Under the current law, the direct application is addressed to the Cyber Security Presidency. The applicant must submit the request to the decision of a criminal judge of peace within 24 hours from the time of the application; the judge’s 48-hour decision period is also taken into account. This route is not a general means of reputation repair. The current official application channel and the transition arrangements are verified on the date of the transaction.

Removal from search results and the right to be forgotten

That content is lawful on the source site does not necessarily mean that its display in searches by a person’s name is lawful in every case, indefinitely or with priority. Removal of the source content and severing the link between the search result and the person’s name are different requests.

The assessment especially considers the following criteria:

• The person’s role in public life
• The contribution of the content to news or to public debate
• The accuracy, currency and publication date of the information
• The link of the information to working life or professional activity
• Health, sexual life and other special-category personal data
• Whether the person is a child
• Whether the information creates a current risk or disproportionate harm for the person
• Whether the content was disclosed by the person
• Process and outcome information in news about crime and proceedings
• The separate effects of search-result removal and of an intervention in the source publication

In a request for removal from search results, an application to the search engine is considered first; where the conditions are met, an application to the Personal Data Protection Board is also evaluated. The deadlines for the data subject’s application and for the complaint are monitored separately. The right to be forgotten is not an unlimited right to have every past news item or court record deleted.

For details on search-result removal, access restriction and platform applications, you may review our page on removing online content and the right to be forgotten.

Social networks, content platforms and account disputes

Platform decisions arise at the intersection of terms of service, community standards, intellectual property notices, identity verification and local legislation.

• Objections to account suspension, closure, access restriction and removal from revenue
• Disputes over fake accounts, account takeover and fake verification
• Content removal based on intellectual property or trademark complaints
• Wrongful copyright notices and counter-notice processes
• Disputes over community rules, advertising accounts and payment interruption
• Contracts with platforms for content creators, agencies and multi-channel networks
• Preservation of data, followers, archives, subscriptions and revenue records
• Coordination of platform applications with legal remedies in urgent cases

The outcome of an in-platform application cannot be guaranteed. The application is prepared in line with the specific type of infringement, the documents proving rights ownership and the platform’s current procedure.

The legal obligations of a social network provider are not the same as the responsibility of an ordinary user or content creator. Access thresholds, representation, notice procedures and obligations that will come into force in the future are assessed according to the operator’s actual role.

Legal basis: 3, 4, 6, 8, 9

Civil and criminal disputes arising from publications

In publication disputes, the same event may give rise at once to private law, criminal law, administrative law, personal data, intellectual property and platform processes. The interaction of the applications and the consistency of the evidence should be planned from the outset.

• Protection of personality rights and claims for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages
• Unfair competition and attacks on commercial reputation
• Infringement of copyright and related rights
• Investigations concerning insult, defamation, threats, private life, communications, and audio and video recordings
• Allegations of unlawful recording, transfer or acquisition of personal data
• Assessment, under the current legal framework, of criminal allegations connected with a publication, including publicly disseminating misleading information
• Assessment of the responsibility of the publisher, the responsible editor, the editor, the journalist, the guest and the person who shares
• Preservation of works, recordings, devices, accounts and online evidence
• Interim measures, preservation of evidence and other temporary legal protections

A criminal complaint does not automatically remove content, and not every false statement carries the elements of the same offence. The nature of the report or comment, intent, lawfulness, the condition of complaint and the identity of the responsible person are examined separately. The related representation may be coordinated with criminal law and administrative disputes.

Cyber security, digital evidence and broadcast infrastructure

Account takeover, interference with a broadcast stream, leaked material, ransomware and data breaches may, together with the technical incident, lead to consequences in publishing, personal data and criminal law.

• Preparation of an incident response plan with regard to legal roles and notification obligations
• Evidence preservation in unauthorized publication, account takeover and content manipulation
• E-mail, server, access log, screenshot and timestamp processes
• Assessment of the responsibilities of service providers, employees, producers and external sources
• Coordination of data breaches and public announcements
• Determination of the scope of work with forensic informatics and cyber security experts
• Transfer of technical reports into legal claims and defences

Technical security testing, forensic informatics examination or data recovery is carried out by the relevant technical experts; the legal strategy and the chain of evidence are coordinated by the attorneys.

To obtain evidence, no one’s account is accessed without authorization, and the integrity of original files and records is preserved. Alongside a screenshot, the URL, the date and time, the full context and any platform notices are kept. Evidence preservation and interim measures serve different purposes.

Legal basis: 4, 5, 6, 12

Film, series, documentary, programme and digital content productions

For a production to be distributable, an uninterrupted chain of rights must be established, from the screenplay to the music and from archive footage to the performance of the actors. An oral understanding, or the payment of the production budget, does not mean that the necessary financial rights have been transferred automatically.

Scope of services:

• Production, co-production, development and executive producer contracts
• Contracts with screenwriters, directors, actors, presenters, composers, cinematographers and technical crew
• Development, option, format, adaptation, re-versioning and sequel rights
• Filming location, work, photograph, archive footage, news recording and music permissions
• Budget, financing, delivery, approval, final-cut and credit provisions
• Broadcast window, medium, territory, duration, language and exclusivity provisions
• Cost overruns, revenue sharing, accounting and audit rights in co-productions
• Preparation of chain-of-title documents for errors-and-omissions insurance
• Festival, cinema, television, in-flight entertainment and digital platform distribution
• Disputes over delayed production, non-delivery or infringement of the right of use

The chain of rights links, for each work and performance, the rights holder, the party granting permission, the mode of use and the documents, in a traceable way. For transactions in financial rights, a written form and a separate indication of each transferred right are important. A permission concerning personality rights does not replace a licence for a work.

Copyright, related rights and content licences

Text, photograph, video, music, graphics, database, software, broadcast recordings and performances may belong to different rights holders. That content is “available on the internet” does not mean that it may be used freely.

Scope of services:

• Review of authorship and of the chain of financial rights in a work
• Arrangement of rights of adaptation, reproduction, distribution, performance and communication to the public
• Rights of performing artists, phonogram producers, film producers and broadcasting organizations
• Music synchronization, master use, mechanical and communication-to-the-public permissions
• Licences for photographs, stock content, archives, agencies and user content
• Verification of open licences, Creative Commons and public domain claims
• Digital rights management, content recognition and revenue-sharing mechanisms
• Piracy, unauthorized re-uploads, use of clips and infringement of broadcast signals
• Evidence preservation, interim measures, cessation of infringement and claims for compensation

Related protection routes fall within intellectual and industrial property law; trademark registration and infringements may be assessed together with trademark law services. For details on authorship, licences and copyright infringement, you may review our page on copyright and works of art and intellect law.

Copyright protection and trademark or patent registration are not the same. For an original work with the character of a work, protection arises in principle from creation; the special scope and evidentiary function of registration systems are examined separately. Facts, events and news information are distinguished from their original form of expression.

Format, adaptation, licensing and international distribution

For a programme or production format, the examination covers what element is protected, the boundary between an idea and its concrete expression, and the confidentiality obligations undertaken by contract.

• Licences for television and digital programme formats
• Adaptation, localization, re-versioning and spin-off rights
• Format bible, episode structure, visual identity and protection of production information
• Restrictions on territory, language, medium, duration and number of broadcasts
• Distribution, sales agency, minimum guarantee and revenue-share contracts
• Delivery materials, technical standards, subtitles and dubbing rights
• Disputes over unauthorized format use, unfair competition and confidentiality

Legal basis: 7

Advertising, sponsorship, product placement and commercial communication

Advertising must suit the medium, the advertising nature must be understandable, its claims must be capable of substantiation, and the restrictions on specific product categories must be observed. A television broadcast, a social media post, an internet advertisement and influencer content are not subject to the same supervision system.

Scope of services:

• Review of advertising text, image, voice-over, comparison and footnotes
• Contracts among advertiser, agency, broadcaster, performer and content creator
• Sponsorship, product placement, programme sponsorship and advertorial content
• Assessment of covert advertising and hidden commercial communication risks
• Health, food, food supplements, finance, betting, alcohol and other regulated-sector advertising
• Advertising and commercial steering aimed at children, gamification and purchase prompts
• Verification of the basis for environmental, ethical, scientific, price and discount claims
• Information, defence and objection work in proceedings before the Advertising Board and RTÜK
• Disputes over suspension of advertising, correction, contractual recourse and compensation

Campaign review also covers the basis for an environmental claim, the presentation of discounted prices by channel, the transparency of targeted advertising and the transfer of consumer reviews into advertising. Whether a permit is required for a prize draw or promotion is assessed according to the prize and participation terms of the campaign. The consumer aspect may be addressed together with consumer law.

For detailed information on advertising, social media collaborations and content creators, you may review our page on advertising, social media and content creator law.

Influencer, broadcaster and content creator contracts

Content creation may bring together advertising, copyright, personal data, consumer, tax and employment-relationship issues. Where content is made in return for a product, a free service, travel, a discount, a commission or another benefit, the commercial relationship must be clearly understood.

Scope of services:

• Influencer, streamer, YouTuber, podcaster and brand collaboration contracts
• Content brief, creative control, approval, posting schedule and correction processes
• Visibility, language, placement and continuity of the advertising disclosure
• Use, re-sharing, paid media, whitelisting and archive rights
• Exclusivity, competing brands, morality clauses and reputational risks
• Accuracy of statements about followers, reach and engagement
• Affiliate links, discount codes, commission and performance payments
• Specific protection for child content creators and parental participation
• Disputes over fake followers, incomplete delivery, unauthorized use and campaigns

From August 1, 2026, under Article 23/A of the Regulation in force, advertisements by social media influencers should contain one of the words “Advertisement” or “Promotion” and information identifying the advertiser. Using only “collaboration” or “sponsored content” is not enough. The disclosure should be noticed on first encounter, placed ahead of other labels and repeated in each post. Only in audio broadcasts is a spoken disclosure of the advertiser required at the start of the programme and before the advertisement.

Legal basis: 2, 10, 11

Content produced with artificial intelligence, deepfakes and synthetic media

When artificial intelligence is used to produce text, voice, images, music, avatars, translations and dubbing, it raises not only technology-contract issues but also questions about the lawfulness of source data, authorship, personality rights, misleading character, advertising and editorial responsibility.

Scope of services:

• Usage policy for generative artificial intelligence tools in the media and advertising workflow
• Rights analysis of training data, inputs, outputs and third-party content
• Consents and contracts for synthetic voice, image, face, avatar and digital twin
• Deepfakes, voice cloning, manipulated images and misleading context
• Labelling, disclosure and source tracking of synthetic content
• Human editorial review, verification and error-correction processes
• Different risk levels in news, advertising and entertainment content
• Scope of the digital use of the image of artists, presenters, employees and brands
• Terms of use, liability and indemnity with the provider of the artificial intelligence tool
• Assessment of current artificial intelligence rules in Türkiye and target markets

An artificial intelligence output is not free of responsibility merely because it was “produced by a machine”. The roles of those who select, edit, publish or use the content for advertising are determined according to the concrete workflow.

In advertising, use of artificial intelligence that significantly affects consumers’ economic behaviour, or a digital character indistinguishable from a human, should be clearly stated. Advertisements that present, through a digital copy of a real person, a product experience or recommendation that did not actually take place are prohibited. A consent or an artificial intelligence label does not in itself make a prohibited form of advertising lawful. Other technology relationships may be assessed under digital technologies, artificial intelligence and fintech law.

Personal data, journalism and KVKK

In terms of the use of personal data in media activity, freedom of expression and the journalistic purpose are important; however, not every data processing activity is automatically covered by the exemption. Advertising, subscriptions, profiling, employee management, events and commercial databases are assessed separately.

• Data source, purpose, accuracy and proportionality in news production
• Data of subscribers, members, viewers, commentators, guests, employees and content creators
• Cookies, measurement, personalization, targeted advertising and profiling
• Use of special-category personal data in broadcast or production processes
• Personal data, images and digital footprint of children
• Camera, sound, biometrics, location and device data
• Roles of data controller and data processor and the related contracts
• Cross-border data transfer and use of international platforms
• Data subject applications, deletion, rectification and search-result requests
• Data breach, notification, evidence preservation and crisis management

The exemption for freedom of expression in Article 28/1-c of Law No. 6698 is conditional; an infringement of private life or personality rights, or an activity constituting a crime, is not protected without limit by this provision. Producing news and marketing to subscribers are separate operations. For transfers abroad, the current mechanisms in Article 9 and the concrete data flow are examined.

Publications concerning children, victims and vulnerable groups

The best interests of the child require particular assessment in respect of identity, image, school, location, health information and family relationships. Parental consent does not make every use lawful without limit.

• Contracts with child actors and child content creators
• Protection of the identity of children and victims in news
• Age classification, protective symbols and parental controls
• Advertising and commercial steering directed at children
• Privacy in competitions, reality shows and social media content
• Special protection in news on health, disability, violence and sexual offences
• Trauma-sensitive broadcasting protocol and reduction of the risk of repeated victimization

In targeted advertising, profiling based on personal data may not be used where the person is known, or reasonably should be known, to be a child. For the amendments made by Law No. 7578 on age verification and parental control on social networks, the entry-into-force date of November 1, 2026 is also taken into account separately; provisions not yet in force are not applied to the past or ahead of their date.

Legal basis: 3, 7, 8, 10, 14

Pre-publication legal review and editorial risk management

Pre-publication review is not a matter of handing the editorial decision to an attorney, nor of preventing lawful criticism. Its aim is to make visible, before a publication decision is made, the basis of concrete assertions, the chain of rights, the risk to private life and personal data, the advertising nature of the content and the points of potential dispute.

Scope of services:

• Review of news, documentary, research file, interview and script
• Table of assertions: a source and verification record for each material claim
• Obtaining an opposing view, response time and reflection of the response in the content
• Risks of hidden cameras, audio recordings, leaked documents and anonymous sources
• Publications involving children, health, sexual offences, family and private life
• Rights review of images, music, archive material and third-party content
• Consistency of the headline, thumbnail, trailer and social media promotion with the main content
• Options for publication, postponement, limited anonymization or additional verification
• Preparation of a post-publication correction and crisis protocol

Press statements, corporate communication and crisis management

In a crisis, the need for a quick statement can increase the risk of serious allegations about an unconfirmed event, disclosure of personal data, breach of investigation confidentiality, employee privacy or breach of contractual confidentiality.

• Legal review of press releases, public statements, question-and-answer sessions and executive remarks
• Separation of allegation, verified fact, evaluation and forward-looking commitment
• Limits of communication in ongoing investigations, lawsuits and administrative reviews
• Data breaches, product recalls, workplace accidents and corporate crisis statements
• Protection of information about employees, customers, suppliers and whistleblowers
• Protocol for responding to press questions and the structure of authorized spokespersons
• Coordination of legal, communications, information security and senior management teams
• A proportionate and documented response strategy to false information

Legal crisis management is not a public relations or reputation marketing service; it manages the legal risk of the statement to be made and its effect on the dispute.

Legal basis: 1, 2, 4, 8, 12

Media employees and freelance content creators

In relationships with journalists, editors, camera operators, production staff, presenters and freelance content creators, employment contracts, press labour rules, authorship and the provisions on personal services may arise together.

• Contracts for press employees and other media employees
• Contracts with freelance journalists, photographers, writers and production teams
• Wages, copyright, overtime, leave, bonuses and expense provisions
• Use of content and intellectual rights produced during work
• Confidentiality, source protection, social media and conflict-of-interest policies
• End of employment, transfer of archives and account access
• Coordination with specialists on employee claims, reinstatement and other labour disputes

Whether a person falls within the scope of the Press Labour Law No. 5953 is determined according to the position and the actual manner of work. Describing a contract as “freelance” does not by itself remove an employment relationship. The bases for claims for labour receivables, copyright and service fees are separate.

Commercial contracts and corporate transactions of media companies

• Content supply, co-production, distribution and licence agreements
• Advertising sales, media buying, agency and barter agreements
• Satellite, transmission, studio, equipment, production and technical service contracts
• Subscription, membership, payment and revenue-sharing models
• Company formation, investment, share transfer, merger and acquisition
• Legal review of media assets and the content library
• Rights inventory, transfer of contracts and change-of-control provisions
• Competition law, media concentration and unfair competition risks

In the contract, the revenue calculation, transfer of rights, liability, termination and archive use are considered together. General contract law and commercial litigation processes are planned together with the special rules of media activity.

Legal basis: 2, 5, 7, 13

International media, cross-border broadcasting and foreign platforms

Content may be prepared in Türkiye and published in different countries, or a foreign platform may target persons and audiences in Türkiye. A choice of law in a contract does not displace every mandatory rule.

• Analysis of the legislation for foreign media and broadcasting services entering the Turkish market
• International production, licence, distribution and advertising agreements
• Multi-country rights chain, geographic licence and broadcasting window
• Activity and content processes of foreign platforms aimed at Türkiye
• Cross-border transfer of personal data and global content operations
• Competent court, applicable law, arbitration and enforcement of decisions
• Recognition and enforcement in Türkiye of foreign court or arbitral awards
• European Convention on Human Rights and the related freedom of expression standards
• Coordination of multilingual contracts, applications and disputes

In international production and licensing disputes, the applicable law, the scope of territorial rights, the arbitration agreement and the enforcement of the decision are examined together. Arbitration does not replace any personality right, administrative or criminal matter. Where a foreign-law opinion is needed, that part is coordinated with an attorney authorized in the relevant country.

Legal basis: 2, 7, 8