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By a decision of 25 October 2005, the Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle Multimedia-Diensteanbieter e.V. (voluntary self-monitoring body for multimedia service providers - FSM) of the Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz (Commission for Youth Protection in the Media - KJM) was finally approved as a voluntary self-monitoring body in the sense of the Jugendmedienschutz-Staatsvertrag (Inter-State Agreement on Youth Protection in the Media - JMStV). Members of the FSM include Internet companies which offer telemedia services. They will now be able to refer any allegations that they have breached the JMStV to...

On 24 November 2005, the governing parties adopted a preliminary draft Bill designed to limit certain tax relief schemes ("closed funds"), including media funds. Under such schemes, investors can offset any initial losses from shareholdings against their tax bill. The prominent feature of the schemes is not the yield on the fund, but the possibility of reducing the investor's taxable income in order to pay less tax. Under the new Bill, initial losses can only be offset against subsequent gains from the same source of income. Therefore, if the fund does not generate any profit, the investors suffer...

In a ruling of 17 November 2005, the Verwaltungsgericht Berlin (Berlin Administrative Court) decided that the Media Council of the Medienanstalt Berlin-Brandenburg (Berlin and Brandenburg Regional Media Authority - mabb) may continue to decide which TV channels are transmitted via the Berlin cable network that has not yet been converted into a broadband network. It ruled that this procedure was in conformity with the Rundfunkstaatsvertrag (Inter-State Broadcasting Agreement) and European law. The legal dispute was triggered by a complaint lodged by a local cable network operator. The operator wished...

On 26 October 2005, the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court) decided that the rules contained in the Bayerisches Mediengesetz (Bavarian Media Act) concerning a cable service charge were unconstitutional. Under these rules, the Bayerische Landeszentrale für neue Medien (Bavarian New Media Office) charges a fee to owners of cable connection points, which is due in addition to subscription costs payable to cable network operators for the use of cable connection points and the licence fees that are mainly used to fund public service broadcasting. The income generated from the charge...

Following several complaints from cable network operators, the European Commission announced on 9 November 2005 that it considered subsidies worth around EUR 4 million granted by the Medienanstalt Berlin-Brandenburg (Berlin-Brandenburg media authority - mabb) to commercial broadcasters for the use of the digital terrestrial television network (DVB-T) to be in violation of EC law. Commercial broadcasters including RTL and ProSiebenSat .1 had received a subsidy towards their transmission costs via the DVB-T network launched in November 2002, even though the Commission had not been notified. In return,...