Information and entertainment for all

Access to information is part of the universal human right to freedom of expression: Everyone should be able to participate in the free flow of information and to obtain information, unhindered, from freely accessible sources.

For Bertelsmann, the provision of information is not merely a duty that arises from our special responsibility as a media company, namely, that of facilitating the process of opinion-building in society. On the contrary: It is an essential part of our business model. We aspire to deliver high-quality content wherever our users want it. The possibilities of new technology are of particular benefit to us in this. Today, more people than ever have access to media. Thanks to digitization, information spreads like wildfire all around the world. We want everyone to be able to access our offerings at anytime and from anywhere. By offering our content in different versions and on different platforms, we also make it easier for the socially marginalized, the elderly or people with disabilities to access information.

Information on all channels

RTL Group’s core business is "free-to-air TV": The series, movies, magazines, news, shows, and sports it broadcasts are free to viewers because they are funded by advertising. This is partly true for its online offerings as well: RTL Group’s “catch-up TV” sites let viewers watch programs they missed, free-of-charge, for a certain period after their TV broadcast. In the print sector, Gruner+Jahr offers discount subscriptions to many of their titles for people on low incomes, e.g., school children, apprentices and those doing community service as an alternative to military service. Alongside Internet use, much of our content – both video and text – is also available for mobile use, such as on mobile phones or via iPhone apps.

Accessibility and sites for people with disabilities

We emphasize accessibility in our websites: As far as possible, we design them to give all visitors unrestricted (fully accessible) use, regardless of their physical or technical capabilities. Our divisions also develop special offers for the visually impaired: At Gruner+Jahr, there has been a full Braille version of “Brigitte” since May 2002. “Stern” magazine has dedicated itself to the blind and partially signed for over 40 years. Selected articles are published in the “Stern-Zeit” newspaper for the blind, and are available free of charge as podcasts and audio downloads on the website of the German Central Library for the Blind in Leipzig (www.dzb.de/stern-podcast.). The new e-book technology, with adjustable font sizes on special readers, facilitates access to literature for vision-impaired or slow readers. In addition, our imprints publish many of their titles as audiobooks.

The channels of the RTL Group broadcast many of their programs with subtitles and/or synchronization in sign language. In France, M6 regularly exceeds the quota set by the French government for programs with subtitles. A joint project being implemented by Bertelsmann’s Representative for Disabled Employees and Radiocenter Berlin can safely be described as an internationally unique pioneering achievement: www.radiofuergehoerlose.de, or radio for the deaf. Since the beginning of August 2009, the first ten episodes of a comedy series from the station 104.6 RTL have been available on the website as a video stream, "translated" into sign language. The comedy clips will soon be followed by the first music videos for the deaf.