German Producers Ask ZDF to Show How Much Work Goes to Its Own Subsidiaries

PROG Producers of Germany, an independent producers' association with about 150 members, calls on ZDF to break down its commissioning report by format and time slot. ZDF's own rule caps the share of commissions and licences going to ZDF-affiliated companies at under one third, but the report gives only the total, so nobody outside the broadcaster can check whether the rule holds in fiction or documentary. PROG managing director Julia Maier-Hauff says members see a shift in fiction commissioning that disadvantages independent producers.