History
In 2000, Bertelsmann and Pearson announced that they would merge their television and radio stations and production companies. [8] This created RTL Group, based in Luxembourg, as a leading European media company. [9] RTL's activities in Germany were also affected by this merger; Bertelsmann had gradually increased its stake in the German television broadcaster RTL in the 1990s. [10]
In 2007, television and content businesses in Germany were bundled under the umbrella of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland. [11] The company introduced a new brand identity and bundled digital competencies. [12]
In 2009, RTL, VOX, N-tv, and other channels moved into a joint broadcasting center in Cologne-Deutz, to achieve synergy effects not only organizationally but also through physical proximity. [13] [14] [15] One example of successful cooperation between the companies of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland is the streaming platform TV NOW. [16] Initially launched by RTL, other channels were successively added to the service. [17]
At Bertelsmann, Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland established further partnerships with other divisions, such as for marketing (Ad Alliance) [18] and content production (Content Alliance). [19] [20]
In 2021, it was announced that Gruner + Jahr and Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland intend to cooperate even more closely in the future. [21]
On August 6 2021, RTL Deutschland announced their acquisition of Gruner + Jahr for €230 million euros (purchase price without debt). The goal was to merge the Gruner + Jahr company with RTL Deutschland by the end of 2021. With the Gruner + Jahr company is the “G+J” brand. The deal was completed on January 1, 2022 with Gruner + Jahr became a division of RTL Deutschland and was renamed to RTL Publishing.
The Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA, commonly known as Bertelsmann, is a German private multinational conglomerate corporation based in Gütersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is one of the world's largest media conglomerates and is also active in the service sector and education.
RTL Group is a Luxembourg-based international media conglomerate, with another corporate office in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The company operates 56 television channels and 36 radio stations in Germany, France and other European countries. It also offers national streaming platforms, content productions and a range of digital services. Important segments of RTL Group are RTL Deutschland, Groupe M6 and Fremantle.
Fremantle Limited, formerly FremantleMedia, is a British multinational television production and distribution company based in London. The company was founded as Pearson Television in 1993 when publishing and education company Pearson acquired the former British ITV franchisee Thames Television. Fremantle takes its name from Fremantle International, which was acquired by predecessor company All American Television in 1994. Pearson Television CLT-UFA from Bertelsmann merged in 2000 to form the RTL Group, with Pearson Television itself renamed that following year as FremantleMedia on 20 August.
The Financial Times Deutschland was a German-language financial newspaper based in Hamburg, Germany, published by Bertelsmann's Gruner + Jahr newspaper and magazine division. The daily contained four sections: Business, Politics & Economy, Finance, and Agenda. It ceased publication on 7 December 2012.
Brainpool TV GmbH is a German television production company located in Cologne.
Super RTL is a German free-to-air television network owned by RTL Deutschland. The channel originally launched in 1995 as a joint venture between RTL Group predecessor company CLT-UFA and Disney's Buena Vista International Television Investments division.
Focus is a German-language news magazine published by Hubert Burda Media. Established in 1993 as an alternative to the Der Spiegel weekly news magazine, since 2015 the editorial staff has been headquartered in Germany's capital of Berlin. Alongside Spiegel and Stern, Focus is one of the three most widely circulated German weeklies. The concept originated from Hubert Burda and Helmut Markwort, who went from being Editor-in-chief to become publisher in 2009 and since 2017 has been listed in the publication's masthead as founding editor-in-chief. As of March 2016 the editor-in-chief of Focus was Robert Schneider.
The Bertelsmann Stiftung is an independent foundation under private law, based in Gütersloh, Germany. It was founded in 1977 by Reinhard Mohn as the result of social, corporate and fiscal considerations. The foundation states that it promotes "reform processes" and "the principles of entrepreneurial activity" to build a "future-oriented society."
Gruner + Jahr is a publishing house headquartered in Hamburg, Germany. The company was founded in 1965 by Richard Gruner, John Jahr, and Gerd Bucerius. From 1969 to 1973, Bertelsmann acquired a majority share in the company and gradually increased it over time. After 2014, the company was a fully owned subsidiary of the Gütersloh-based media and services group. Under the leadership and innovation strategy of Julia Jäkel, Gruner + Jahr evolved into a publishing house producing cross-channel media products for the digital society.
Arvato is a global services company headquartered in Gütersloh, Germany. Its services include customer support, information technology, logistics, and finance. The history of Arvato goes back to the printing and industry services division of Bertelsmann; the current name was introduced in 1999. Today, Arvato is one of eight divisions of Bertelsmann, the media, services, and education group. In 2016, Arvato had about 68,463 employees and an overall turnover of 3.84 billion euros.
BMG Rights Management GmbH is an international music company based in Berlin, Germany. It combines the activities of a music publisher and a record label.
RTL Living is a German pay television channel operated by the RTL Group, launched on 27 November 2006. Its programming consists of television shows about trends, lifestyle, life and travel. On October 1, 2015, RTL Group announced that it was relaunching and redesigning its three pay TV channels RTL Living, RTL Crime and Passion as of November 12, 2015. At the same time, new channel logos will also be introduced for these channels.
Thomas Rabe is a German business executive. In 2006, he was appointed to the Bertelsmann executive board, of which he has been chairman and chief executive officer since 2012. Under his leadership, the group has become more international, more digital and more diversified. In particular, he has advanced the business with music rights and the educational division. Additionally, Rabe was appointed chief executive officer of RTL Group in 2019.
The Bertelsmann Printing Group is a German group of companies in the printing industry with headquarters in Gütersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was established in 2016 and is the market leader in Europe among offset and gravure printing companies. The Bertelsmann Printing Group is one of eight divisions of Bertelsmann, the international media, service and education conglomerate.
Dana Schweiger is an American television personality, entrepreneur and a former model.
Geo Television is a German-language pay-TV station of the RTL Group. It is the TV offshoot of the magazine with the same name (GEO). Geo Television focuses on reports and documentaries.
Anke Schäferkordt is a German businessperson who served as CEO of the RTL Group from 2012 until 2017. Besides that, she won the International Emmy Award for Directorate Award in 2013.
Julia Jäkel is a German business executive and publisher. She serves as non-executive director of several companies. From 2012 to 2021, Jäkel was Chief Executive Officer of Gruner + Jahr and a member of the Bertelsmann Group Management Committee. She also chaired the Bertelsmann Content Alliance. Jäkel is a widely known promoter of diverse leadership.
Prince Charming is a German reality dating show that premiered on October 30, 2019, streaming on premium sector of RTL+ and began airing on April 20, 2020, on television on VOX. The concept of the show is modeled after Der Bachelor, but with gay men and instead of having a rose ceremony, it features a black tie ceremony.
I Can See Your Voice is a German television mystery music game show series based on the South Korean programme of the same name. Since the show's two-night pilot premiere on 18 and 19 August 2020, it has aired three seasons on RTL.
€2,127 million (2020)
