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The Bundesministerium für Familien, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend (Federal Ministry for Families, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth - BMFSFJ) has announced plans to initiate an amendment to the Jugendschutzgesetz (Youth Protection Act - JuSchG) in the near future. Under the amendment, providers of films and games will, in future, be able to have their products labelled under the JuSchG, regardless of how they are distributed. At present, the JuSchG only makes provision for such labelling for storage media on which films and games are sold. However, it remains unclear whether films and games offered...

In a decision of 7 March 2012, the Kommission für Jugendmedienschutz der Landesmedienanstalten (Land Media Authorities’ Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media - KJM) agreed to broaden the powers of Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle Fernsehen (Voluntary Self-Regulation of the Television Industry - FSF). FSF had asked for its remit to be extended to include television-like telemedia content. The non-profit-making association of private television providers had previously been responsible for checking the intensity of violent or sexual content of television programmes and deciding at what...

On 20 March 2012, the Kommission für Zulassung und Aufsicht der Landesmedienanstalten (Media Licensing and Monitoring Commission - ZAK) filed another complaint that the “Show zum Tag des Glücks”, broadcast by TV broadcaster “Das Vierte”, infringed the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag (Interstate Gambling Agreement - GlüStV), and prohibited a repeat broadcast (see IRIS 2011-10/12). During the programme, which was broadcast on 11 November 2011, the Süddeutsche Klassenlotterie (South German lottery - SKL) had been mentioned by the presenter a total of 26 times and its logo had appeared more than 200 times....

On 31 December 2011 at 20:20h, the film “Ratatouille” was broadcast on VTM, a Flemish commercial broadcaster. This movie was interrupted three times for advertising breaks. Vlaamse Regulator voor de Media (Flemish Media Regulator - VRM) received a complaint. According to the plaintiff, this movie could not be interrupted by advertising because it is a children’s programme (Article 80 (2) Mediadecreet (Flemish Broadcasting Act)). However, VRM judged that this Article was not violated. The general rule about the interruption of programmes by advertising is that broadcasters can choose when they interrupt...

On 4 April 2012, the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers (CM) adopted Recommendation CM/Rec(2012)4 on the protection of human rights with regard to social networking services. The CM notes in the Recommendation that social networking services (SNSs) are important for the effective exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms because they can assist the wider public to receive and impart information. SNSs are of public service value because they offer possibilities for enhancing the potential for individuals’ participation in political, social and cultural life and facilitate democracy...