New draft law: Netflix, Disney and Co. must invest in film productions in Germany

[10:24 Sun,31.May 2026 by Thomas Richter]

Good news for the German film industry: The Federal Cabinet has just approved[a draft law](kulturstaatsminister.de/fileadmin/user_upload/Downloads/BKM/Stellungnahmen_MedienInvest/260527_Gesetzentwurf_der_Bundesregierung_MedienInvestVG.pdf) that obliges major streamers like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ to invest a portion of their revenue into film production within Germany in the future.

The goal is to prevent a situation where, despite generating significant revenue in Germany through streaming subscriptions, the films shown are produced in other, cheaper countries, leaving the German film industry empty-handed. A prime example of this is Netflix’s Oscar-winning film "All Quiet on the Western Front," which, as a German production, was filmed primarily in the Czech Republic because conditions there were more favorable. Another aspect of the law also strengthens the copyrights of independent producers.

What is new and what is changing specifically?

The core of the draft law, which is now heading to Parliament and is scheduled to take effect at the beginning of 2027, is as follows: Streaming services like Netflix, Amazon, Disney+, and others must in the future invest at least 8% of their net revenue generated in Germany into European audiovisual works.

Under the Film Funding Act (FFG), providers were already paying a levy to the German Federal Film Board (FFA) – but this was aimed exclusively at the cinema market. In the streaming age, where cinema films subject to the FFA play only a minor role in the offerings of major platforms, this had become a blunt instrument. A direct legal investment obligation for new European or German-language productions was missing.

The crucial details of the new law lie in the sub-quotas: Of the 8%, at least 60% must be allocated to the production of new European audiovisual works, at least 80% to works in the original German language, and at least 70% to works by independent film producers. The latter is intended to prevent Netflix or Amazon from simply supplying their own corporate subsidiaries with contracts.

In addition to film production, other areas eligible for the 8% include rights acquisition, screenplay and project development, accessibility, dubbing and subtitling, as well as, to a limited extent, advertising, support for young talent, and festival participation.

While there has long been[an EU requirement](www.slashcam.de/news/single/Netflix--Amazon-und-Co-sollen-mindestens-30--europ-14343.html) for at least 30 percent European works in the catalogs of streaming providers, this "cultural quota" says little about where the content was produced or whether it actually generates new orders in Germany. This is because the quota can simply be met by licensing older films from France, Spain, or Italy. The planned German investment obligation therefore goes much further: it does not aim for a fixed European share in the catalog, but for concrete expenditures on productions located in Germany.

Broadcasters with streaming services included

The investment obligation does not apply only to international streaming services. Television broadcasters such as RTL, ProSiebenSat.1, as well as the public broadcasters ARD and ZDF with their media libraries, also fall under the regulation, provided they offer streamed content online. For commercial offerings, the net revenue of the respective VoD service is the deciding factor, whereas for public media libraries, the program costs of the non-linear offering are used – as public media libraries do not generate subscription revenue.

More rights for independent producers

Another point of the law concerns the legal reversion of rights: Independent producers will receive the rights to their work back after a limited usage phase (between 3 and 7 years, depending on their own financing share). This is a structural change that could help independent production companies build their own catalogs of rights and exploit their works independently in the long term – a domain previously dominated by large broadcasters and platforms.

What does this mean for the German film industry?

Since major streaming services do not publish country-specific revenue figures, the expected investment sums can only be estimated. If one roughly calculates based on the 22.1 million SVoD subscribers in Germany[(VAUNET 2024)](vau.net/pressemeldungen/umsaetze-fuer-pay-tv-und-bezahlte-online-videoinhalte-in-deutschland-stiegen-2024-auf-rund-55-milliarden-euro/) and average subscription prices, Netflix alone is likely to generate annual revenue in the high triple-digit millions to low billions in Germany – which would mean an investment obligation of an estimated 80 to 120 million euros annually. Significant additional sums would come from Amazon Prime Video and Disney+. The Federal Film Board will determine the actual revenues individually and confidentially.

In addition to this money, there are the already approved federal funds for the so-called "Film Booster": Economic film funding via the DFFF and GMPF is increasing to 250 million euros annually, nearly doubling from the previous level. Together with jury-based cultural film funding and funds from the Federal Film Board, the federal government states it will provide more than 300 million euros per year for film productions in the future. On top of this comes funding from the federal states.

When does the law take effect?

The Media Investment Act (MedienInvestVG) is scheduled to take effect no earlier than January 1, 2027, following parliamentary deliberation. Small services with annual revenue under 10 million euros are exempt, and new market entrants are only affected from the 25th month after entering the market. The Federal Film Board will monitor compliance: those who miss the quota risk a compensatory levy of 75% of the unfulfilled amount – with the FFA having discretionary power in this regard.

The long political battle over the investment quota

It is interesting how the law came about. Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth (Weimer) long favored a voluntary solution: the streaming giants and broadcasters had promised her investments of around 15.5 billion euros over five years – without legal compulsion. Roth felt this was enough; she also feared the legal risks of a mandatory requirement. The SPD and Lars Klingbeil rejected this and insisted on a legal obligation. Their argument: voluntary commitments are not predictable, not enforceable, and not reliable for the industry. The SPD prevailed – albeit with a comparatively low quota of 8%, which is considered a compromise.

Reactions: Praise with requests for improvement – and criticism

Industry associations such as the Producers Alliance, AG DOK, PROG Producers of Germany, and the German Film Academy welcomed the cabinet decision as an important step, but simultaneously urged for improvements. Green Party cultural politician Sven Lehmann, chairman of the Bundestag&s Committee on Culture, also praised the project in principle but criticized that Roth had unnecessarily wasted time by clinging to voluntary solutions. On the other side, the digital association Bitkom criticizes the law as "rigid requirements, additional bureaucracy, and one-sided burdens."

What is better than before – and what is still missing?

For the first time, Germany has a binding, enforceable investment obligation for major streaming services with this law. The sub-quotas for German language, new productions, and independent producers meaningfully supplement this obligation and hopefully prevent the circumvention of investment duties. Furthermore, the reversion of rights sustainably strengthens small production companies in Germany by enabling them to independently exploit older works after the usage phase expires. The investment obligation also significantly improves planning security for studios and crews – for everyone involved, from camera operators and lighting technicians to location scouts.

Many industry observers consider the 8% quota to be too low compared to the EU average. And the long-discussed tax incentive model (Film Funding Allowance Act/FFZulG) is still missing – which continues to structurally disadvantage Germany in the competition for locations against Great Britain or Ireland. Parliamentary deliberation could still refine this.

Conclusion

After years of waiting, Germany now has a tool with the MedienInvestVG that other EU countries have long been using. It is not a game-changer, but an overdue step, as it closes a gap that has systematically disadvantaged Germany compared to other European countries like France, Spain, or Great Britain.

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