Search results : 1394

On 15 May 2025, the Landgericht Köln (Cologne Regional Court – LG Köln) ruled in the second instance (case 6 S 114/23) that price increases for monthly usage fees may not be made unilaterally by a provider, but require the customer’s express consent. In the case at hand, a user had sued the streaming service provider Netflix for imposing three subscription price increases and demanded a refund of the overpayments. Price increases in December 2017, June 2019 and May 2021 meant that the price of the premium subscription originally purchased for EUR 11.99 per month had risen...

On 3 June 2025, the Medienpädagogische Forschungsverbund Südwest (mpfs), a research body acting on behalf of the Landesanstalt für Kommunikation Baden-Württemberg (Baden-Württemberg state media authority), the Medienanstalt Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate state media authority) and Südwestrundfunk (SWR), published its 15th study on childhood, Internet and media (KIM Study 2024). In a parent-child survey conducted as part of the study, 1,225 children aged between 6 and 13 were asked about their own and their family’s media usage, leisure activities and interests....

On 28 April 2025, the Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz (Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media – KJM) published its 11th activity report, which documents a significant increase in the number of cases relating to the protection of children and young people from harmful content over the past two years. Hate, incitement and disinformation are described as the dominant themes, particularly in online media. Shortly afterwards, on 13 May 2025, the Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle Multimedia (voluntary self-monitoring body for multimedia service providers – FSM) also published...

In two decisions dated 24 April 2025, the Verwaltungsgericht Berlin (Berlin Administrative Court) (case nos. VG 32 L 25/25 and VG 32 L 26/25) rejected urgent applications by Cyprus-based Aylo Freesites Ltd for interim legal protection against blocking orders relating to its German-language telemedia services ‘Pornhub’ and ‘Youporn’. The blocking orders were based on a decision taken by the state media authorities’ Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz (Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media – KJM) in a longstanding investigation that has also resulted...

In its decision of 14 April 2025, the Bundesverwaltungsgericht (Federal Administrative Court – BVerwG) rejected an application from a newspaper publisher (the applicant) for information concerning the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic to be disclosed by the Bundesnachrichtendienst (Federal Intelligence Service – BND). By way of a temporary injunction, the applicant had submitted a list of questions to the BND, asking when the BND had informed the Federal Chancellery of its findings on the origin of the virus, as well as whether and, if so, when this information had been classified as...