The Regional Court of Cologne has banned Bild TV from using certain public service content from the evening of the election in interim injunction proceedings. Specifically, it is about a 13-minute excerpt from the "Berlin Round", as a court spokeswoman announced to the Evangelical Press Service (epd) on Friday. At the end of September, ARD and ZDF announced that they would take legal action against Bild TV for the unauthorized takeover of content. The "Berliner Runde" is a joint broadcast by ARD and ZDF in which leading politicians are discussed about the election results.
In the case of the “Berliner Runde”, the court rated the use as disproportionate due to its length.
If a shorter interview excerpt is taken over, on the other hand, it should be assumed that the takeover is permissible within the framework of the barriers to reporting on current events.
Bild TV is now no longer allowed to make the corresponding content available on YouTube, said the court spokeswoman.
However, legal remedies are possible on the part of the broadcaster.
If Bild TV objects to the decree, there will be an oral procedure.
Too extensive in terms of time
A spokesman for the Bild group told the epd that it was very welcome "that the Cologne Regional Court shares our legal opinion that the use of ZDF's content on the evening of the election by Bild TV was a reporting of a current event that was fundamentally privileged by copyright." however, do not share the view that the use of the “Berlin Round” was too extensive in its length of time. "We have not been heard by the Cologne Regional Court in this matter and are considering to appeal against this background," he said.
After the election, the ZDF complained about the unauthorized takeover of parts of the ZDF election programs in the linear offer and on the BILD TV website on election Sunday. With reference to the copyright law, the broadcaster asserted a claim for injunctive relief and damages. In addition to the “Berlin Round”, ARD was also concerned with the first prognoses for the Bundestag election on Sunday evening.
A spokesman for Bild TV had stated in response to the legal proceedings of ARD and ZDF that the federal election was a historical moment of overwhelming public interest.
The different prognoses were quoted live with a clear reference to the source and selected sequences from the “Berliner Runde” were taken over, ”he told epd.
The "Berlin Round" is a news event of paramount importance, which is centrally organized by ARD and ZDF as a fee-financed broadcaster, but is also relevant for people who want to find out more on election evening in another way.