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In a decision of 14 October 2004, the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court) declared that judgments handed down by the European Court of Human Rights are not always binding on German courts. The Bundesverfassungsgericht referred the case back to the Oberlandesgericht (Court of Appeal), which, it ruled, was not bound by the earlier judgment by the ECHR. International agreements were incorporated into German law by formal enactment of legislation and had the status of a federal law. German courts should therefore observe and apply the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)...

In its judgment of 14 October 2004 in the case of Omega GmbH v. Bundesstadt Bonn, the Court of Justice of the European Communities answered the questions referred to it for a preliminary ruling by the Bundesverwaltungsgericht (Federal Administrative Court). The main proceedings concern the question whether the service provided by Omega Spielhallen- und Automatenaufstellungs GmbH could be prohibited on the grounds that it violated human dignity (for a detailed description of the "Laserdrome" installation, see IRIS 2004-6: 3). The Bundesverwaltungsgericht raised the question in light of the fact...

The Gemeinsame Stelle Programm, Werbung und Medienkompetenz (Joint Authority for programming, advertising and media) of the Direktorenkonferenz der Landesmedienanstalten (Conference of Land Media Authority Directors DLM) has approved a set of guidelines for TV competitions. The guidelines, proposed by the Landesanstalt für Kommunikation Baden-Württemberg (Baden-Württemberg Communications Office - LFK) and the Bayerische Landeszentrale für neue Medien (Bavarian New Media Office - BLM), are meant to facilitate common, practicable regulation of TV competitions. The document recommends that TV broadcasters...

For the first time since the co-regulatory system for the protection of youth in the media was established in Germany (see IRIS 2002-9: 15), the state regulator, the Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz (Commission for Protection of Youth in the Media - KJM), has overturned a decision of the co-regulatory body, Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle Fernsehen (FSF). The FSF had examined various episodes of the MTV cosmetic surgery show " I want a famous face " before they were broadcast and approved them for daytime transmission. Under the provisions of the Jugendmedienschutz-Staatsvertrag (Inter-State Agreement...

On 9 July 2004, the Landtag (regional parliament) of North Rhine-Westphalia held a hearing on a Bill tabled by the Landesregierung (regional government) amending the Gesetz für den Westdeutschen Rundfunk (West German Broadcasting Act). The participants included representatives of regional broadcasting authorities, regulatory bodies, cable and satellite associations and academics. Based on the complaints management system used by the British public broadcaster BBC, the Bill proposes the creation of an independent programming and complaints body, which would decide on viewers' complaints in agreement...