ARD

A funding shakeup, limited services, and a merger are all on the cards as part of a package of reforms for the public media of Germany.

With German federal states announcing reform plans, the ARD and ZDF supervisory boards have called for public media values to be protected.

The outlook for public media is not encouraging with young audiences turning to streaming services much more than public media.

The KEF’s recommendation to raise the Germany's public media funding by 58 cents per month has been described as “a challenge”.

A year out from any decision, politicians in Germany are already positioning themselves to oppose an increase to the licence fee.

The shared network, due to launch in a few weeks, will bring together the streaming libraries of both Germany’s public broadcasters.

The heads of Germany’s 16 states have given their assent to reforming Germany’s public media sector, but the proposals have faced criticism.  

An investigation into Berlin's public broadcaster after the head and chair resigned is critical to ensure trust in Germany's public media.

The UK’s House of Lords has suggested replacing the licence fee with a household levy which would not be dependent on owning a television.

After years of negotiations, Germany's federal states have finally agreed on the direction for public media reform.