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C ologne Cathedral towers majestically over the banks of the Rhine. For centuries, it has been the city’s emblem and landmark. Directly opposite, on the other side of the river, the new headquarters of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland is being built – and with it, another city landmark. In the coming months, some 2,000 employees will be moving into the brick buildings of the former trade fair grounds facing the cathedral. Together with its sister stations Vox, N-TV and Super RTL, RTL Television will occupy 77,000 square meters. The new head- – 18 – ENTERING THE TELEVISION BUSINESS Just the usual craziness With the founding of the station RTL Plus in 1984, Bertelsmann made its first foray into television – as the partner of a Luxembourg-based company, and under the leadership of an Austrian executive. It may be a billion-euro business today, but it began with a small budget, lots of humor, and even more improvisational talent. quarters with its 80-meter-high tower is another visible sign of the rapid growth RTL has undergone since its creation 26 years ago. Today, RTL is the biggest private broadcaster in Europe. But the road began in a modest villa and a bus garage – not in Cologne, but roughly 200 kilometers southwest of the city, in Luxembourg. When the legal foundations for commercial television were being laid in Germany in the early 80s, Bertelsmann’s new chairman of the board, Mark Wössner, sensed a huge opportunity. He gathered a group of talented staff members to seize on the enormous potential of private television, which was clear from a quick glance over the border. But they recog- nized their own limitations: “We didn’t have any real experience in television, aside from being able to turn a TV on and off without incident,” jokes Bernd Schiphorst. At that time, Schiphorst was working for Gruner + Jahr, serving as a member of the Wössner Group, and was soon to head up all of Bertelsmann’s fi lm, TV and radio operations. Aware of their limits, the team started looking for a partner. Leo Kirch, Germany’s premier supplier of fi lm and television productions, was going in a different direction. The public broadcasters ARD and ZDF had extensive television experience, but Bertelsmann was not interested in trying to lure away their personnel. >
1 | Bartringen in Luxembourg: RTL Television headquarters until 1988 2 | The new headquarters of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland on the Rhine, at the former trade fair grounds opposite the cathedral: 77,000 square meters for 2,000 employees 3 | The launch of RTL Plus: On January 2, 1984 at 5:27 p.m., presenter Rainer Holbe gives birth to the new “TV baby“ live, but definitely not yet in High-Definition 4 | Peter Kloeppel, with the station since 1985, is now editor-in-chief of RTL Television 5 | Programming head Marc Conrad and CEO Helmut Thoma: two successful founding fathers of private television in Germany 6 | In 1984, Hans Meiser and Geert Müller-Gerbes present an unusual and audiencefriendly news format with “7 vor 7” 3 1 2 4 5 6 – 19 –
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Annual Report 2009 Digitization Inn
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Bertelsmann at a Glance Key Figures
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Corporate Divisions at a Glance RTL
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Content 8 - 23 175 Years of Bertels
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8 175 Years of Bertelsmann The Lega
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10 175 Years of Bertelsmann 1835 -
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