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In IRIS 1996-2, p.14, we reported that there was political agreement on a new Telecommunications Act. On 27 June 1996 the Bundestag adopted the Telecommunications Bill. The Bundesrat was expected to approve it on 5 July. The Act can then be brought into force. The Act comes after some debate, in which it was eventually possible to clarify the questions which still remained and reach an agreement with the somewhat divergent position of the Bundesrat. The Media Committee of the Bundesrat and the Bundestag finally reached agreement on 14 June. The vocal and network monopoly of Deutsche Telekom AG...

The regional broadcasting corporations grouped together in ARD have jointly lodged a complaint against the private television broadcaster PRO SIEBEN with the Regional Court in Stuttgart because the broadcaster regularly contravenes the regulation on advertising time contained in paragraph 4 of the Agreement between the Federal States on broadcasting in united Germany (RfStV) when broadcasting films. Under this provision, films and television films other than series, light entertainment and documentaries, and lasting more than 45 minutes may only be interrupted once in any one complete 45-minute...

In a recently published decision of 8.12.1995, the Court of Appeal in Düsseldorf dismissed the claim of a telephone-sex supplier against Deutsche Telekom concerning the provision of a connection to foreign telecommunications companies using direct dialling. The judgment was made in a case brought by the operator of a so-called "telephone contact service", which supplied two different types of erotic contacts. In both cases a foreign telecommunications company was involved in providing the connection between the client in Germany and the relevant service company. For providing the connection,...

On 02.05.1996 the Minister of Training, Science, Research and Technology, Jürgen Rüttgers, presented the foundations for the legislation on information and communication services. According to these, the Act is to include broader forms of interactive individual communication, various forms of switching between individual and mass communication, and electronic press services. It is intended to lay down outline conditions for the new information and communications technologies, thereby creating optimum conditions for standardised development. Regulations to liberalise the various media markets,...

Increasingly, transactions are being handled electronically, not least because of the so-called "new media". Declarations of intention are being transmitted more and more frequently by electronic media. In certain areas of transactions the application of modern communications techniques has in fact become inescapable (eg tele-banking, on-line messages, tele-shopping, video-on-demand). Having acknowledged the existence of an electronic form of declaration of intention, it is necessary to create a secure legal framework. For this purpose the Federal Law Society has published a bill aimed at adapting...