For years now, there has been an ongoing dispute in German courts between the German TV broadcasters RTL and SAT.1 on the one hand, and the operators of the Internet video recording platforms Shift.TV and Safe.TV on the other. The broadcasters are of the opinion that by offering Internet video recorders, the operators of the Internet platforms infringe their right to transmit their TV shows pursuant to Section 87 of the German Copyright Act. On April 11, 2013, the German Federal Supreme Court had to decide on this matter. In our article “Internetvideorecorder: lizenzpflichtig oder zustimmungsfrei?” (“Internet video recorders: subject to license fees or fair use?“), published in Deutscher AnwaltSpiegel, Issue 12, we have summarized the background of the case, as well as the decision and its consequences.

Download the .PDF below to read the article in German.