Germany to require streamers to invest in local content

The German government will require TV broadcasters as well as streamers such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ to invest at least 8% of their German revenues into German-language and European productions.

Streamers will also be obligated to give certain rights to producers, eliminating the standard work-for-hire model.

If the streaming platforms and broadcasters spend more than 12% of their revenues on local productions, they will be exempt from complex regulations obliging them to, for example, produce films in the German language.

In addition, the government has agreed to increase funding for film production to €250m  ($295.2m) a year, nearly double its previous level.

"This is not a symbol, but a real investment stimulus: for jobs, value creation, and creative excellence," said Wolfram Weimer, Germany’s Commissioner for Culture and the Media, in a statement.

Germany joins a number of other European countries, including France, Spain, Denmark, and Italy, that now insist streamers invest in local production.

"Now the ball is in the court of the streamers and broadcasters on the one hand, and the producers on the other," said Weimer.

Vaunet, the organisation that represents major commercial broadcasters and streamers in the German market, described the move as “a bitter disappointment for the media industry and ignores existing commitments from streaming providers”

HBO Max has signed a distribution deal with leading German streamer RTL+ ahead of its launch in Germany on January 13. Discover more here.