The IRF Interessengemeinschaft Radio und Fernsehen advocates a diverse TV and radio landscape and aims to maintain the common interests of national and international broad­casters when it comes to the design of the relevant political, legal and economic framework.

The decision to jointly represent the interests of the broad­casters under the IRF name was the result of a ground­breaking supreme court decision (BG 107 II 82) secured by the ORF in 1981. With said decision, the highest Swiss court confirmed for the first time that programmes of a broadcaster may only be re-transmitted by wire or wirelessly with their permission.

The founding members, which, in addition to the SRG, also included the German broad­casters ARD and ZDF as well as the ORF, had set themselves the goal to enable cable TV operators to collectively obtain the necessary cable rights from the broad­casters in a simple and efficient process. By means of this structure, they had thus created a legal basis for the rapid development of future cable television.

Subsequently, all national and international broadcasters joined the IRF, provided that their broadcasting range entitled them to participate in the distribution of the cable re-transmission remuneration of IRF. In 2013, the interest group was converted into an association with the name Interessengemeinschaft Radio Fernsehen (IRF).

The domestic Distribution Committee is composed of nine national delegates and based on equal representation.

The foreign Distribution Committee is composed of twelve international Delegates and based on equal representation.

The Board of Directors consists of nine members.