Report on the Lecture “Broadcasting Fee Law – A Practical Insight” by Patrick Jede

On November 22, 2017, Patrick Jede, LL.M. (Siegen), spoke on the topic “Broadcasting Fee Law – A Practical Insight.” Jede completed the bachelor’s and master’s degree program in “German and European Business Law” at the University of Siegen. He has been working in the broadcasting fee department of WDR in Cologne since March 2017. His presentation took place as part of the series “Business Law in Corporate Practice” (WIR-UP), organized by Prof. Rösler in cooperation with the Institute for Media and Communications Law (IMKR). The WIR-UP lecture series brings together Siegen students and alumni to exchange ideas and discuss real-world cases. The alumni share their experiences starting their careers and their day-to-day professional lives.

Jede began by presenting the roles and responsibilities of WDR and the Beitragsservice. The changes to the State Treaty on Broadcasting Fees (RBStV) are crucial. Since December 2012, the monthly fee of 17.50 EUR per household has been charged, rather than a “license fee” per receiving device. The “License Fee Collection Center” was renamed “Beitragsservice.” The obligation to pay the broadcasting fee under §§ 2 and 5 RBStV applies to every occupant of a dwelling. This also includes holders of second homes and vacation homes. In addition, every business owner is required to pay the broadcasting fee. Depending on the number of business locations, employees, and motor vehicles, a multiple of the fee rate is applied on a monthly basis.

Any grounds for exemption are regulated in § 4 RBStV. In this regard, Jede explained various exemption options. According to § 4(1) No. 5 lit. a RBStV, these include students who receive financial aid under the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG). This was followed by a lively discussion about how to fairly distinguish between these students and low-income students who do not receive BAföG. The obligation to pay the fee for companies that are purely “mailbox companies” was also discussed. Jede reported on his task of preparing legal documents for the WDR’s legal department. This requires extensive research, cross-referencing the documents with the internal database, and drafting a legal opinion for the legal department. He explained various arguments and defenses that plaintiffs regularly raise.

Finally, Jede discussed current case law with the participants. This includes, in particular, the Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG) ruling of September 27, 2017 (6 C 32.16). According to this ruling, hotel and guest room operators are only required to pay the broadcasting fee if they provide their guests with the appropriate receiving devices or internet access. The legislature did not provide for an exemption from the broadcasting fee in cases where no reception devices are provided. According to Jede, the judges – contrary to the legal situation – ruled that the collection of the broadcasting fee in such cases was impermissible. However, the Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG) did not raise any objections regarding the admissibility of the broadcasting fee (BVerwG judgment of Jan. 25, 2017 – 6 C 7.16, et al.).

Furthermore, the preliminary ruling (Case C-492/17) submitted to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) by the Regional Court of Tübingen regarding the compatibility of the broadcasting fee with EU law was discussed. Among other things, the ECJ had to address whether, in 2013, approval from the European Commission was required for the amendment to the RBStV pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 TFEU. The ECJ answered the questions by holding that there was no amendment to an existing state aid measure within the meaning of these provisions and that, therefore, the Commission’s approval was not required.

Notes: Prof. Dr. Koblenzer, a lecturer at the University of Siegen, has published an article, which you can find here (in German). Prof. Rösler discussed the conformity of the broadcasting fee with EU law in his article “Medienwirtschaftsrecht: Wettbewerb auf privaten Medienmärkten und die Funktion des öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunks” (Media Business Law: Competition in Private Media Markets and the Role of Public Broadcasting), JZ 2009, 438–448.