The Law no. 198 of 26 October 2016 established, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the "Fund for pluralism and innovation of information". This fund is aimed at ensuring the implementation of the constitutional principles regarding freedom and pluralism of information at a national and local level, encouraging innovation of the information offer and the development of new publishing companies also in the field of digital information. By further decree of the President of the Council of Ministers, it is the allocation of resources to the various interventions of specific competence is established annually of the Prime Minister's Office.
As part of its institutional duties and mandatory functions the Department:
-ensures the application of the measure for the granting of direct contributions to radio companies that have carried out activities of general interest (art.1 of Law no. 230 of 7 August 1990);
-enters into specific contracts with news agencies for the purchase of news and information services in order to ensure the central and peripheral administrations of the State and to the diplomatic and consular network of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation the maximum the greatest distribution of news on the most relevant aspects of national and international political, economic, social and cultural reality, respecting the fundamental principle of pluralism of the sources of information. For the supply of the aforementioned services the press agencies are selected through European tenders, thereby reconciling the principle of pluralism of information sources with the principle of free market competition, using open procedures divided into lots pursuant to Legislative Decree no. 50/2016 (Public Contracts Code);
- promotes agreements with RAI (Italian Radio and Television). The Agreements provide the realization and broadcasting of tv and multimedia programs for abroad; the transmission of radio and television programs in French in the Valle D'aosta region, in Slovenian and in Italian and Friulian in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region; the broadcasting of programs to protect minorities of German and Ladin language in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano. Expenses are borne by the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, although the competence remains of the state, headed by the Department for information and publishing.
Moreover, an Agreement is also in force, ratified with Law no. 164 of 29 September 2015, on radio and television collaboration between the Italian Republic and the Republic of San Marino, aimed at contributing, through the RAI, to the activity the broadcaster of the San Marino public radio and television service.
- implemented the discipline of direct contributions in favor of companies that carry out edits, in Italy or abroad ((D. lgs. 15 maggio 2017, n. 70/ DPCM 15 September 2017). Among the main innovations introduced there is the possibility to request the contribution for a single publication; the commitment to adopt suitable measures to contrast forms of advertising that are harmful to the image of women's body; the regular fulfillment of the obligations deriving from labor and social security legislation and from the employment contract applied by the publishing company; the disciplinary review of the special contribution in favor of consumer and user associations which publish periodicals on the protection of consumers and are registered in the list established at the Ministry of Economic Development (MISE);
- promoted the compensation to Poste Italiane S.p.A. for preferential postal rates (Law no. 19 of 27 February 2017). The measure provides for subsidized postal rates for the shipment of editorial products made by the publishing companies of newspapers and periodicals registered in the Register of communication operators (ROC), by the publishing companies of books by non-profit associations and organizations;
- promoted Tax credit for newsstands (Law n. 145 of December 30, 2018). The measure recognizes, for the years 2019 and 2020, a tax credit to merchants operating in the retail sale of newspapers, magazines and periodicals. In particular, this measure is aimed at merchants who operate exclusively in the retail sale of newspapers, magazines and periodicals; to merchants who sell goods and are authorized to sell newspapers or periodicals (so-called non-exclusive sales points), provided that the aforementioned commercial activity represents the only retail outlet for newspapers, magazines and periodicals in the municipality of reference.