EPCR have announced changes to the qualification system for Champions Cup that would end Italy's guaranteed seat at the table and remove the play-off for the final place in the competition.
European rugby bosses will bring the changes into effect for the 2018/19 tournament.
Under the new rules, the top seven teams in the PRO12 will qualify automatically, regardless of nationality, removing the provision that at least one team from each participating country - Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Italy - must be awarded a place in the tournament.
That provision proved costly for Cardiff Blues this season, as the Welsh outfit finished seventh in the table but ceded that place in the Champions Cup to 10th-placed Treviso.
Instead, Cardiff join Irish province Connacht in the semi-finals of a four-team play-off for the 20th and final place in the tournament, but that play-off will not take place next year, with the last spot going to the winners of the Challenge Cup.
If that team is already qualified, the losing finalists will be handed the European place.
Pro12 Rugby chief executive Martin Anayi welcomed the changes, saying: "Everyone has seen the positive impact that meritocracy has had on the Guinness PRO12 since it was introduced in the 2014/15 season.
"Competition has never been greater among our clubs and these latest changes will deliver true meritocracy to our Championship.
"In this past season, we have been greatly encouraged by the performances of our teams in the Champions Cup and the Challenge Cup and this development will prime them to make a greater impact in the future."
