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RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana (; commercially styled as Rai since 2000; known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane) is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many terrestrial and subscription television channels and radio stations. It is one of the biggest broadcasters in Italy competing with Mediaset, and other minor radio and television networks. RAI has a relatively high television audience share of 35.9%.

RAI broadcasts are also received in surrounding countries, including Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, France, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, San Marino, Slovenia, Switzerland, Tunisia and the Vatican City, and elsewhere on pay television and some channels FTA across Europe including UK on the Hotbird satellite. Half of RAI's revenues come from broadcast receiving licence fees, the remainder from the sale of advertising time."Basta con il governo padrone, così cambierà la Tv pubblica"
Retrieved on 2007-10-10
Italian Ministry of Communications, Retrieved on 2007-10-10 In 1950, RAI became one of the 23 founding members of the European Broadcasting Union.

Structure

RAI is 99% owned by the Italian Government Ministry of Economy and Finance and is the sole licensee (''Concessionaria in esclusiva'') of the Radio, Television, and Multimedia broadcasting public service. For this reason, the agreement with the Government prescribes a series of rules and guarantees that Rai must follow to ensure a fair public service to the citizens.

Management and Board of Directors are elected by the ruling Parliament through the ''Commissione parlamentare per l'indirizzo generale e la vigilanza dei servizi radiotelevisivi'' (Parliamentary Commission for General address and Supervision of Radio and Television Services) every three years, in agreement with almost all Parliamentary exponents, usually following the political side of the majority and leaving some space for minor roles to minority parties exponents.
Rai is formally a private joint-stock company (''società per azioni'') (although all stocks are state-owned) its company statute precisely describes how the strict relationship with the Republic is, also ruled by different national laws (the most recent one is the 2015 "Riforma della Rai", i.e. the 2015 law n.220.), including the "Testo Unico della Radiotelevisione" (roughly ''Consolidated Law on Radio and Television'').

Rai and broadcasting are supervised by the commission, which rules also economics budgets and main regulations (including public service's electoral segments during electoral campaigns).

History

1924

Unione Radiofonica Italiana (URI) was formed in 1924 with the backing of the Marconi Company following a model adopted in other European countries. URI made its inaugural broadcast — a speech by Benito Mussolini (1883–1945) at Teatro Costanzi — on 5 October. Regular programming began the following evening, with a quartet performing Haydn's Quartet No. 7 in A major from the Palazzo Corradi. At 21.00 CET, Ines Donarelli Viviani announced for the first time: "''URI—Unione Radiofonica Italiana'' Rome station 1RO 425 metres wavelength. To all those who are listening our greetings, good evening". Guglielmo Marconi's ''S.A. Radiofono—Società Italiana per le Radiocomunicazioni Circolari'' (Radiofono) held 85% of URI shares and Western Electric's ''Società Italiana Radio Audizioni Circolari'' (SIRAC) held the remaining 15%.

Under the provisions of Royal Decree No. 1067 of 8 February 1923, wireless broadcasting became a state monopoly under the control of the Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs; URI was commissioned to provide services for a minimum of six years pursuant to Royal Decree No. 2191 of 14 October 1924 ''"Concessione dei servizi radioauditivi circolari alla Società Anonima Unione Radiofonica Italiana"''. However, when URI's contract expired in 1927, it was succeeded under Royal Decree Law No. 2207 of 17 November 1927 by the partially nationalised Ente Italiano per le Audizioni Radiofoniche (EIAR), which became ''Radio Audizioni Italiane S.p.A.'' (RAI) with investment from ''Società Idroelettrica Piemontese'' (SIP) in 1944.

1940s

During the reconstruction following World War II, much of RAI's early programming was influenced by the " Reithian" style of the BBC
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