States with federal structures advocate for reduced radio programming from public broadcast entities.
Publicly-funded German broadcasting might see a significant reduction in radio programs, according to Heike Raab, coordinator of the Broadcasting Commission of the States. Raab, who is also a media state secretary in Rhineland-Palatinate, indicated that discussions are underway to trim down TV niche channels and limit apps as well.
Heike Raab stated this to the German Press Agency (dpa). Hessischer Rundfunk (HR), an ARD broadcaster, has already announced plans to have fewer than the current six radio programs in the long run. Some of the publicly-funded broadcasters' niche channels include Tagesschau24 (ARD), Phoenix (ARD and ZDF), KiKa (ARD and ZDF), ZDFinfo (ZDF), ZDFneo (ZDF), ARD alpha (ARD), and One (ARD).
Germany is currently engaged in a broader broadcasting reform, driven by demands from the State Circle for the Public Broadcasters to be more cost-effective. The German states commission the public broadcasters and set their basic structure via a State Treaty, with the houses having control over content, considering press freedom.
The Broadcasting Commission is scheduled to present its proposals to the Minister-Presidents in October. Raab noted that they are in a good and constructive process and will continue discussions on Monday.
A Reform State Treaty is being drafted to oversee changes in a total of five further State Treaties: Media State Treaty, ARD-, ZDF-, and Deutschlandradio-State Treaties, as well as the Broadcasting Financing State Treaty, where the contribution level is set. However, details about the states' concrete plans for financing have yet to be disclosed. There is currently a debate among the states about the appropriate height of the broadcasting contribution.
A recommendation by the Commission for the Determination of the Broadcasting Institutions' Financial Needs (KEF) to increase the contribution from January 1, 2025, from 18.36 Euros to 18.94 Euros, has not been approved by several Minister-Presidents. As the states can only alter the contribution level collectively, the case may end up before the Federal Constitutional Court.
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In light of the German states pushing for cost-effectiveness in public broadcasters, federal states might request a decrease in radio programming from public service broadcasters like ARD and ZDF. The reform proposals suggested by the Broadcasting Commission could potentially affect the number of radio programs offered by broadcasters, such as Hessischer Rundfunk, which has previously announced plans to reduce its radio offerings.
