Economy
The Republic of Moldova, among Europe's poorest nations, recorded a GDP of $16.5 billion and a per capita GDP of $6,600 in 2023. Following a recession in 2022, the economy grew marginally by 0.7% in 2023, still impacted by Russia's war in neighbouring Ukraine. This conflict triggered an energy crisis and price surge in Moldova, affecting both the broader economy and population.
In 2023, the National Bureau of Statistics reported an average gross monthly salary of 12,354 MDL ($691), while the minimum subsistence level stood at 2,877 MDL ($161) per person monthly.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also affected the Moldovan media and advertising markets. Independent local TV stations reported that major advertisers favoured channels with limited war coverage and those broadcasting Russian entertainment content, which remained popular among Moldovan viewers. This trend benefited stations retransmitting Russian content or owned by Russian entities over local producers.
In December 2022, the Commission of Emergency Situations and the Council for Promotion of Investment Projects of National Importance suspended the licences of several TV stations linked to sanctioned oligarchs and those with unclear funding sources, particularly those retransmitting Russian programming.
By Autumn 2024, the broadcasting space in Moldova was dominated by private TV channels (notably TV8, Jurnal TV, Pro TV Chisinau, Cinema 1, One TV), two public TV channels (financed from the state budget) - Moldova 1 and Moldova 2, as well as a subsidiary of the Romanian public TV channel - TVR Moldova.
Beyond advertising revenue, some TV channels receive support through grants from international institutions and Western embassies in Moldova.
The print media faced a crisis when Poșta Moldovei, the main distributor, announced a 3.4-fold increase in distribution tariffs for 2024. The government intervened with a compensatory mechanism for qualifying Moldovan periodicals, though its continuation into 2025 remains uncertain.
The media landscape also includes Radio Free Europe's Moldova office, which produces online written content, audio podcasts, and video products distributed across various social networks.