The Bundeskartellamt, Germany's competition authority, has granted approval for the establishment of a joint venture between RTL2 and Warner Bros. Discovery. This new entity will primarily focus on the marketing of TV advertising spaces for both companies, reflecting a strategic move to enhance their competitive position in a rapidly evolving media landscape.

Andreas Mundt, President of the Bundeskartellamt, emphasized that the television industry is undergoing significant changes, prompting a greater interest in collaborations to compete against international giants. He noted that while previous market conditions did not allow for closer ties among competitors, the current situation permits this joint venture, particularly as both RTL2 and Warner Bros. Discovery are smaller players in the market.

RTL2 operates the RTL2 advertising-funded television channel in Germany and distributes content through RTL+ and other platforms. Previously, RTL2 marketed its advertising spaces mainly through its own subsidiary, El Cartel Media. Interestingly, RTL2 is not a subsidiary of RTL, but rather a joint venture involving RTL and other media stakeholders.

Warner Bros. Discovery also runs various free-to-air channels in Germany, including DMAX, TLC, Tele5, and Eurosport 1, as well as pay-TV channels like the Discovery Channel and Warner TV Film. The company has primarily marketed its advertising spaces independently until now.

Despite their efforts, both RTL2 and Warner Bros. Discovery lag significantly behind the leading advertising marketers of major broadcaster groups like RTL and ProSiebenSat.1, which dominate the big screen advertising market. Additionally, competitors such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney are increasingly entering the advertising-funded video content space, with YouTube also offering comparable advertising spaces. Given these dynamics, the Bundeskartellamt found the joint venture between RTL2 and Warner Bros. Discovery to be justifiable.

Recently, the Bundeskartellamt has closely examined two initiatives involving RTL, issuing press releases and case reports regarding the RTL/RTL2 and Super RTL/Nickelodeon cases, indicating its active role in monitoring the media market.