Germany: Media, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment

The EU Cyber Resilience Act establishes cybersecurity as a prerequisite for EU market access, affecting not only hardware products with digital elements but also standalone software. Manufacturers must navigate new conformity assessments, CE marking requirements, and mandatory free security updates during defined support periods. These requirements may force companies to fundamentally rethink their go-to-market processes and pricing calculations.

The EU Cyber Resilience Act introduces strict cybersecurity reporting requirements for manufacturers of connected products, with deadlines as tight as 24 hours for early warnings of actively exploited vulnerabilities and severe incidents. Manufacturers must navigate parallel obligations across multiple regulatory frameworks while facing penalties of up to EUR 15 million or 2.5% of global turnover for non-compliance.

The Düsseldorf Local Division partially upheld a patent relating to multimedia content sharing in peer-to-peer configurations and found indirect infringement by Disney's streaming service. The decision addresses critical issues of claim construction, patent validity, and procedural aspects while applying established UPC case law on inventive step testing.

The European Commission has proposed a new regulation to establish an EU-wide selection procedure for allocating licenses in the 2 GHz mobile satellite services band, with one-third reserved for governmental and defense use and two-thirds for commercial applications. The proposal aims to promote direct-to-device services and technological sovereignty once current authorizations expire in May 2027.

Eine fehlende Telefonnummer in der Widerrufsbeleh- rung, eine falsche Bezeichnung des Bestellbuttons: Was nach Kleinigkeiten klingt, kann Unternehmen in kostspielige Gerichtsverfahren treiben.

A requirement to avoid the unauthorized display of sensitive personal data (such as a user's facial image) during a payment authentication process...

The German Federal Court of Justice has delivered a landmark ruling in the decades-long "Metall auf Metall" litigation, applying the EU Court of Justice's framework to determine whether unauthorized music sampling can qualify as lawful "pastiche" under copyright law. The decision examines whether a two-second rhythm sequence from Kraftwerk's 1977 recording, used repeatedly in a 1997 song, constitutes permissible artistic dialogue or copyright infringement.

Germany's Federal Cabinet has adopted a draft law requiring streaming platforms and media service providers to invest at least 8% of their net annual revenue in European audiovisual production, with specific sub-quotas...

Germany's federal cabinet has approved a draft law requiring streaming platforms and public broadcasters to invest 8% of their net revenue into European audiovisual productions, with strict rules on exclusive licensing periods and rights reversion.

The European Patent Office's Technical Board of Appeal examined whether a patent application for targeted advertisements with video recording functionality meets inventive step requirements. The decision analyzes how authentication performed by different entities and adding service options to advertisements relate to technical and non-technical features under patent law.

As AI reshapes how clients discover and evaluate law firms, three strategic imperatives emerge from a recent German firm's rebranding: distinctive visual identity as competitive advantage, substantive content that builds pre-contact credibility, and authentic people-centered storytelling that transforms brand promises into trusted relationships.

The European Commission has published draft guidelines interpreting the AI Act's transparency obligations, establishing when and how organizations must disclose AI-generated content, deepfakes, and automated interactions. These guidelines clarify that deepfake labeling applies regardless of intent to deceive, that AI systems must identify themselves at the point of interaction, and that the editorial review exception for AI-generated text requires substantive human oversight with clear accountability.