German broadcasters lose AdBlock Plus legal challenge

German broadcasters RTL and ProSiebenSat1 have lost a court action against Eyeo, the maker of online ad-blocking software AdBlock Plus.

A spokesperson for the court confirmed the ruling and in a statement said that the court had concluded the software was not anti-competitive because internet users were choosing to instal AdBlock Plus and Eyeo did not have enough dominance of the market to stop online publishers from finding sufficient users who would see ads.

A spokeswoman for RTL said that the company is considering appealing the decision.

“We are weighing a possible course of action against the ruling and assessing the prospects of an appeal,” she said.

AdBlock Plus is controversial as Eyeo operates an “acceptable ads” whitelist on which larger sites have to pay to be included.

Eyeo estimates AdBlock Plus is used on 50m computers, and there are about 150m people using some sort of ad-blocking software, according to Pagefair, a site which specialises in telling digital publishers when users are blocking ads.

The ruling in a Munich regional court is the second defeat in as many months for online publishers challenging the software, and Eyeo’s fourth successful defence against court action brought against it.

In April, Zeit Online and Handelsblatt lost a case against Eyeo which claimed its software was anti-competitive.

Another legal battle is ongoing with German publishing giant Axel Springer, publisher of the country’s largest newspaper Bild.

A ProSieben spokesperson said that the ruling “threatens the financial basis” of free content on the internet and its implications were an “attack on media pluralism and freedom of the press”. The company said it was reviewing options for appeal and further legal action.

An Eyeo spokesperson said the decision was “another win for every internet user”, which confirmed “the legitimacy of our acceptable ads initiative”.

“This is the fourth time that massive publishers have brought legal proceedings against our startup,” it added. “But even with expensive lawyers and bottomless pockets, this was a clear case of users’ rights – so we felt it was the right time to stand up and draw a line in the sand. Thankfully, the court sided with users and with compromise.”

“So we’re pleased to say that Adblock Plus will continue to provide users with a tool that helps them control their internet experience. At the same time we will endeavor to work with publishers, advertisers and content creators to encourage nonintrusive ads, discover new ways to make ads better and press forward to a more sustainable internet ecosystem.”