Germany's New Internet License Fee

PapayaSF writes "Beginning January 1st, Germany will require payment of a license fee of 5.52 euros a month on computers and mobile phones that can access TV and radio programs over the Internet. Like the current TV and radio license fees, the money will support national and local public TV and radio stations. German companies with many computers are predictably upset." I'm not sure if this is the same story we discussed in 2004. Did this original fee go through, and this is another fee on top of the original?

Comments

Re:Still payable if TV/Radio streams firewalled?

[WilliamSChips]

I wish the US had a TV license. That way we could have a TV channel not tied to the profit margin so that we could get decent shows like Doctor Who more often. Wait, this is the United States, they'd go out of their way to make it all reality crap.

Re:Still payable if TV/Radio streams firewalled?

[WilliamSChips]

After reading this I must wonder: Why is the US system so broken? Other countries have managed to at least partially seperate profit motive from television and therefore reduce the amount of crap on and yet the United States still...sucks.