About us

SPOTLIGHT

Fourty Years Private Media

Private media will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2024. For the industry, this year will be the year of setting the political course for the next decade. 40 Years On

Press releases

All press releases

Study

Online audio usage in Germany reaches record levels

Online audio consumption in Germany has reached a new high: 52 million people in Germany listen to audio content from the Internet at least sometimes, which corresponds to three quarters of the population aged 14 and over.

Study

VAUNET spring forecast: Advertising in audio and audiovisual media set to grow again in 2024 in Germany

The VAUNET spring forecast for the advertising market in 2024 in Germany shows: Advertising revenue in the audio and audiovisual media is expected to rise by about 6.1 per cent after a 4 per cent decline in 2023. The advertising market for audio and audiovisual media has experienced significant volatility since the onset of the coronavirus crisis f …

Study

Media consumption in 2023: Average daily use of audio and audiovisual media in Germany approaches 10 hours

People in Germany used audio and audiovisual media for almost 10 hours a day in 2023. Compared to 2022, media usage is only slightly down, but is still almost an hour higher than in the pre-corona period. To mark the 40th anniversary of private broadcasting, the VAUNET Media Usage Analysis 2023 also shows the course of media usage over the last 40 …

Commercial media reach an audience of millions with their offerings. As multi-channel providers and digital players, they have long ceased to be just television and radio in the traditional sense, but also offer a wide range of on-demand, social media and user-generated content, as well as many other attractive interactive services.

In order for the sector’s companies to fulfill their special responsibility for media and opinion diversity in Germany and Europe in the digital world, the regulatory, technological and economic framework conditions must fit. As a trade association, VAUNET supports companies in achieving these goals in pursuing dialog with politicians, supervisory bodies and market partners – both at the national and the European level.

VAUNET on EU level

Europe

Commercial media play an important part on digital markets, which these days are increasingly networked, often on a global scale. The stage is often set by the implementation of EU directives and other pertinent regulations. At a European level, too, a level playing field is essential for fair competition. VAUNET positions

VAUNET Profile

Europe’s largest association representing the interests of commercial broadcasters
Umbrella organization with no commercial interests
Almost 160 members from the audio and audiovisual media sector:
- offer many hundreds of audio and audiovisual media services – from radio programs, web channels and audio-on-demand to free TV, pay TV, teleshopping or video-on-demand (VoD) and interactive services
- stand for high social relevance with their information and entertainment offerings and are important partners in the fight against disinformation and hate speech
- as part of the audiovisual media industry, they are one of the largest and fastest-growing sectors of the German economy
- offer exciting job opportunities in a wide range of professions, such as reporter and editor, data engineer, SEO specialist, legal counsel, developer and controller, product manager or marketing specialist.
Co-initiator of Voluntary Self-Regulation of Television (FSF), founding member of Voluntary Self-Regulation of Multimedia (FSM), Association of European Radios (AER) and Allianz „Koalition Kultur- und Kreativwirtschaft“ (k3d) as well as founding shareholder of the central technical service provider for online measurement, INFOnline
Member of the Central Association of the German Advertising Industry (ZAW) and the German TV Platform, as well as associate member of Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM)

History

1990 Merger of the two founding associations to form the Association of Private Broadcasting and Telecommunications (VPRT)
2006 Change of name to Verband Privater Rundfunk und Telemedien e. V. (VPRT)
2018 Renamed VAUNET – Association of Private Media: The name VAUNET is derived from the initial letters of „video“ and „audio“, which form the cornerstones of the association, and from the term „network“.