RTL+
Weighted across nine legal categories. Lower is worse.
Executive summary
RTL+ is a paid German streaming service, and these terms read like a conventional, reasonably fair German consumer contract rather than an aggressive one. The payment section is the strongest part: you get a one-month minimum term, cancellation at any time with one month's notice directly in your account, the statutory 14-day withdrawal right spelled out in full, and at least four weeks' warning plus a right to object before any price increase. Liability follows the standard German statutory pattern, there is no arbitration clause, no class-action waiver and no user indemnity, so your access to the courts is intact. The weak points are that this document says almost nothing about what happens to your personal data even though it describes personalised recommendations, automatic customer-magazine emails and household verification checks, and that RTL states outright it will not take part in consumer arbitration board proceedings. If you breach the rules and get blocked, any money you already paid is forfeited unless you can prove the damage was lower.
Category breakdown
Acceptance of Terms & Scope
Contract formation and service boundaries
The scope is defined in unusual detail, with each product package (Free, Basic, Premium, Premium Werbefrei, Musik, Live-Only) described separately along with the broadcasters and third-party services included. Acceptance happens through an active clickwrap flow: you register, validate your email, click the buy button, and RTL confirms by email, so there is no browsewrap or silent acceptance. Registration is limited to adults aged 18 and over. The main weakness is that several material terms, including product-specific cancellation periods and the lists of eligible countries, sit behind external links rather than in the document you agree to.
Key findings
- Acceptance is an explicit two-step process: clicking the buy button is your offer, and RTL's confirmation email forms the contract.
- Registration is restricted to natural persons aged 18 or over, which is stricter than most streaming services.
- The scope covers a named list of TV channels and product packages, with clear statements of what each tier adds.
- Cancellation periods and country availability are outsourced to external help pages, so the binding detail is not in this text.
- You carry the risk that your device fails the technical requirements, and RTL sets those requirements at its own reasonable discretion.
- The German legal drafting is dense, with no plain-language summary of key points.
Evidence from the document
Diese Nutzungsbedingungen finden auf die Nutzung aller Produkte bei RTL+ Anwendung und regeln die von RTL interactive zu erbringenden Leistungen sowie die Befugnisse und Pflichten der Benutzer
Eine Registrierung ist durch natürliche Personen ab 18 Jahren möglich.
Weitere Einzelheiten zu den jeweiligen Produkten, Kündigungsfristen sowie den aktuellen Inhalten und die Funktionalitäten finden Sie unter:
Recommendations
- Before you buy, open the linked product and cancellation-period page and save a copy, because those terms bind you but are not in the contract text.
- Check the system requirements page against your TV, phone or browser first, since you get no refund if your own equipment is the reason the service does not work.
- Confirm which package you are actually buying, because Basic, Premium and Musik have materially different content and device rules.
User Accounts
Registration, suspension, and termination
Account rules are moderate and, importantly, blocking requires fault plus a prior warning with a reasonable deadline to fix the problem, which is better than the sole-discretion suspensions common elsewhere. Payment-default blocking also requires a reminder and a deadline first, and access is restored once you pay. The clear negatives are that RTL can refuse a registration without giving any reason, that fees you have already paid are forfeited if a block is your fault, and that the document describes no appeal route and no way to export anything before losing access.
Key findings
- Blocking for rule breaches requires culpable conduct, a formal warning and a reasonable cure period first.
- Prepaid fees are forfeited when you are responsible for the block, although you may prove the actual damage was lower.
- RTL can reject individual registrations without stating any reason.
- Access blocked for late payment is lifted again once the outstanding amount is paid.
- You are responsible for keeping access to the registered email address, since all contract communication goes there.
- No appeal process, human review commitment, or data export option is described.
Evidence from the document
Der Kunde ist verpflichtet, sämtliche Angaben im Rahmen der Registrierung wahrheitsgemäß zu machen.
RTL interactive ist berechtigt, einzelne Registrierungen auch ohne Angabe von Gründen abzulehnen.
für die Nutzung von RTL+ zu sperren, wenn der Kunde den Verstoß trotz Abmahnung mit angemessener Frist nicht abstellt
Bereits entrichtete Entgelte verfallen in diesem Fall und werden nicht zurückerstattet, sofern der Kunde die Sperrung zu vertreten hat
Recommendations
- Keep the email address on your account current and accessible, because every contract notice, including price changes, is sent only there.
- If you receive a warning about a rule breach, fix it within the stated deadline, since that is what stops a block and the loss of fees you already paid.
- Never share your login outside your household, as sharing is the breach most likely to trigger a warning and then a block.
Intellectual Property & UGC
Content ownership and licensing
This is a one-way streaming service, so there is no user-generated content and, helpfully, no clause claiming a licence over anything you create. The IP rules run the other way: content is copyright protected, private use only, protected by DRM you may not circumvent, and you may not copy, edit or pass it to third parties. Those restrictions are standard for licensed video, and the document twice states that your statutory rights remain unaffected, which preserves things like quotation and private copying. Sharing links through the built-in social functions and embedding certain podcasts are expressly allowed.
Key findings
- No user content licence is demanded, because the service does not host user-generated content.
- Use is limited to private, non-commercial viewing, and content may not be copied, edited or passed on.
- All video and live streams carry DRM that limits simultaneous streams and may add territorial or time limits, and you may not remove or bypass it.
- Statutory user rights are expressly preserved after both the usage and distribution clauses.
- Sharing links through the built-in social media functions is permitted, and some podcasts may be embedded on your own site under separate conditions.
- Commercial text and data mining of the content is prohibited under the German copyright reservation.
Evidence from the document
Der Kunde ist ausschließlich zur privaten Nutzung von RTL+ berechtigt.
Der Kunde ist nach diesem Vertrag nicht berechtigt, das DRM zu verändern, zu entfernen oder zu umgehen.
Gesetzliche Rechte bleiben von Ziffer 4.1 unberührt.
Die Nutzung sämtlicher Inhalte des Produkts (insbesondere Texte, Bilder, Grafiken, Videos, Audioinhalte und sonstiger begleitender Daten) für kommerzielles Text und Data Mining im Sinne des § 44b UrhG ist nicht statthaft.
Recommendations
- Treat downloads as viewing copies only, since offline files stay under DRM and may not be shared or converted.
- If you want to embed RTL+ podcasts on your own website, read the separate podcast embedding conditions linked in the terms first.
- Remember that the promise that statutory rights remain unaffected means the private-use ban cannot override your rights under German copyright law.
Data Privacy
Data collection, usage, and protection
Privacy is essentially absent from this document even though the terms describe several data-driven features: personalised recommendations and layout, personalised advertising messages, push notifications, and a right for RTL to demand proof that all your registered devices belong to one household at one address. There is no privacy policy reference in this text, no statement of what data is collected, how long it is kept, who it is shared with, or how you exercise your GDPR rights. German and EU law give you those rights regardless, and the opt-out routes for marketing email are clearly described, but as a document this tells you almost nothing about your data.
Key findings
- No data protection notice, retention period, or GDPR rights information appears anywhere in the terms.
- The Basic product is described as personalised, using your personal interests to shape recommendations and layout.
- Registered customers automatically receive the RTL+ Insider marketing magazine by email, with unsubscribe available in every email and in the account.
- Further personalised advertising messages and push notifications require you to opt in first.
- RTL may require reasonable proof that your registered devices belong to members of the same household at the same address.
- Payment data flows to third-party payment providers whose own terms may apply in addition.
Evidence from the document
Bei "Basic" handelt es sich um ein personalisiertes Produkt. Der einzelne Kunde erhält auf Grundlage seiner persönlichen Interessen passende Vorschläge und ein angepasstes Layout.
Registrierte Kunden erhalten von RTL interactive per E-Mail als exklusiven Vorteil den "RTL+ Insider", das elektronische RTL+ - Kundenmagazin.
Kunden können, wenn sie auf dem jeweiligen Gerät zugestimmt haben, personalisierte oder allgemeine Push-Nachrichten rund um RTL+ erhalten.
RTL interactive behält sich das Recht vor, vom Kunden nach billigem Ermessen einen angemessenen Nachweis darüber zu verlangen, dass die vorstehende Anforderung eingehalten wird.
Recommendations
- Read RTL's separate data protection notice before signing up, because this contract does not tell you what happens to your viewing and payment data.
- Unsubscribe from the RTL+ Insider magazine through the link in the email or your account settings if you do not want marketing mail, since you are enrolled automatically.
- Decline push notifications at the device prompt and skip the personalised messages opt-in if you want less profiling.
- Use your GDPR rights of access and erasure directly with RTL interactive, since German law grants them even though this document does not mention them.
Payment & Subscriptions
Billing and subscription management
This is the strongest section of the contract. The minimum term is one month, auto-renewal is disclosed openly, and after renewal you can cancel at any time with one month's notice by email or directly in your account profile. The full statutory 14-day withdrawal notice is reproduced, including the refund mechanics. Price increases require at least four weeks' advance email notice, are tied to defined cost categories, must be passed on downward when costs fall, and you can object, in which case your old price continues. The main catches are that the withdrawal right typically expires early because consent is collected during registration, that trials are limited to one per customer, and that no refund is due when your own hardware fails the requirements.
Key findings
- One month minimum term, then automatic renewal with cancellation possible at any time on one month's notice.
- Cancellation can be done by email or self-service in the account profile, with no phone call required.
- The 14-day right of withdrawal is set out in full, with refunds due within 14 days using your original payment method.
- The withdrawal right usually lapses early because consent to immediate performance is collected during registration.
- Price changes need at least four weeks' notice by email, are limited to defined cost categories, and can be objected to, but RTL may then terminate at the end of the term.
- Free trials are limited to one per customer, are only for new customers, and are never guaranteed.
- Fees are charged in advance, direct debit is pre-notified five business days ahead, and bounced-payment costs fall on you.
Evidence from the document
Wenn nichts Abweichendes vereinbart wurde, ist eine Kündigung jederzeit mit einer Frist von einem Monat möglich.
Sie haben das Recht, binnen vierzehn Tagen ohne Angabe von Gründen diesen Vertrag zu widerrufen.
RTL interactive wird die betroffenen Kunden mindestens vier Wochen vor Inkrafttreten der Preisanpassung über die Preisanpassung informieren.
Sämtliche Kosten, die aus einer allein vom Kunden zu vertretenden Nichteinlösung oder Rückbuchung einer berechtigten Lastschrift entstehen, gehen zu Lasten des Kunden.
Recommendations
- Cancel through the account profile rather than by email so you have a timestamped record, and do it more than a month before you want billing to stop.
- When a price increase email arrives, object in writing before the effective date if you want to keep your current price, and note that RTL may respond by ending the contract at term end.
- Set a reminder for the end of any free trial, because it converts to a paid month automatically and you only get one trial ever.
- Keep enough money in the account behind your SEPA mandate, since return fees are charged to you.
Limitation of Liability
Risk allocation and legal protection
The liability clause follows the standard structure that German law permits rather than the blanket exclusions common in US terms. Statutory warranty rights for a defective service are expressly preserved. Liability is full for breaches of essential contractual duties, capped at foreseeable typical damage only for slight negligence, and full without limit for injury to life, body or health, for product liability claims, for guarantees and for assured characteristics. Everything else needs intent or gross negligence. There is no uptime guarantee and RTL may remove or replace individual content, though only for defined reasons and only if the overall character of the product is preserved.
Key findings
- Statutory warranty rules apply in full if the service is defective.
- Liability for breach of essential contractual duties is preserved, limited to foreseeable typical damage only in cases of slight negligence.
- No cap at all applies to injury to life, body or health, product liability claims, guarantees or assured characteristics.
- Outside those cases liability requires intent or gross negligence, which is the German market norm.
- Availability is only a best-efforts promise, with no service credits or compensation for outages.
- RTL may remove or replace individual content, but only for legal, technical or editorial reasons, only where reasonable for you, and only if the overall character of the product survives.
Evidence from the document
Ist das bereitgestellte Produkt mangelhaft, gelten die gesetzlichen Gewährleistungsvorschriften.
haftet RTL interactive nach den gesetzlichen Vorschriften bei Schäden wegen (i) Fehlens zugesicherter Eigenschaften, (ii) bei der Verletzung des Lebens, des Körpers oder der Gesundheit
Im Übrigen besteht eine Haftung von RTL interactive nur bei Vorsatz und grober Fahrlässigkeit.
RTL interactive ist bemüht, das Produkt möglichst ununterbrochen verfügbar zu halten.
Recommendations
- Do not expect compensation for short outages or maintenance windows, because availability is promised only as a best effort.
- If a show or film you subscribed for disappears, check whether the overall character of your package really survived, since that is the condition the contract sets for removals.
- Assert your statutory warranty rights first if the service is defective, as the contract explicitly leaves them intact.
Indemnification
Legal responsibility allocation
The document contains no indemnification clause at all. You are never asked to defend, indemnify or hold RTL harmless against third-party claims, and there is no obligation to pay the company's legal costs. That absence is good for you, so the score sits at the top of the neutral band. The only cost-shifting provisions are narrow and specific: bank charges from a direct debit that fails through your fault, and forfeiture of prepaid fees where you caused a block. Confidence is capped because the category itself is not addressed.
Key findings
- No user indemnity or hold-harmless obligation appears anywhere in the terms.
- You are never made responsible for RTL's legal fees or third-party claims against RTL.
- Cost shifting is limited to bank charges from a failed direct debit that you caused.
- Prepaid fees are forfeited where you are responsible for a block, but you may prove the actual damage was lower.
- No reciprocal company indemnity is offered either, which is normal for a streaming service.
Evidence from the document
Sämtliche Kosten, die aus einer allein vom Kunden zu vertretenden Nichteinlösung oder Rückbuchung einer berechtigten Lastschrift entstehen, gehen zu Lasten des Kunden.
Bereits entrichtete Entgelte verfallen in diesem Fall und werden nicht zurückerstattet, sofern der Kunde die Sperrung zu vertreten hat
Recommendations
- Treat the absence of an indemnity clause as a genuine plus when comparing this against services that make you underwrite their legal costs.
- Keep your payment account funded, since the only real cost-shifting rule here is that bounced direct debit charges land on you.
Modification of Terms
How agreements can be changed
Changes are handled better than the internet average. RTL may change the terms only where the change is reasonable for you weighing both sides' interests, and core elements such as price and the scope of what each side owes are expressly carved out and handled through the separate price-change procedure. Every change is announced by email to your registered address, and you get 30 days to object in writing. The weaknesses are that staying silent counts as approval, that objecting successfully can prompt RTL to terminate your contract at the end of the term, and that no archive of earlier versions is offered beyond a single date stamp.
Key findings
- Changes must be reasonable for you, judged against both parties' interests, rather than made at sole discretion.
- Core terms, including prices and the scope of the agreed services, are excluded from the general change right.
- Each change is notified individually by email to your last registered address, not merely posted on a website.
- You have 30 days from receipt to object in text form, and a timely objection means the terms are not changed for you.
- Silence or a late reply counts as approval of the change.
- If you object, RTL reserves the right to terminate the contract at the end of the current term.
- Only a single version date is given (January 2026), with no changelog or archive of prior versions.
Evidence from the document
RTL interactive steht das Recht zu, diese Nutzungsbedingungen jederzeit zu ändern, wenn die Änderung unter Berücksichtigung der Interessen von RTL interactive und des Kunden für den Kunden zumutbar ist.
Der Kunde hat die Möglichkeit, einer solchen Änderung innerhalb von 30 Tagen ab Erhalt dieser Benachrichtigung in Textform (z.B. per E-Mail, Telefax oder Brief) zu widersprechen.
Widerspricht der Kunde der Änderung nicht oder nicht rechtzeitig, gilt die Änderung als genehmigt.
Stand: Januar 2026
Recommendations
- Do not ignore emails announcing changed terms, because saying nothing for 30 days counts as agreement.
- If you object, be aware RTL may end your subscription at the end of the term, so decide whether the change or the service matters more.
- Save a dated copy of the terms when you sign up, since no version archive is offered.
Governing Law & Disputes
Jurisdiction and conflict resolution
Your access to justice is largely intact. German substantive law applies, the UN sales convention is excluded, and there is no arbitration clause, no class-action waiver, no jury waiver and no exclusive forum clause, so the ordinary German and EU rules that let consumers sue at home continue to apply. A standard severability clause is included. Two points count against the score: RTL states plainly that it will not take part in proceedings before a consumer arbitration board, closing the cheap out-of-court route, and your right to set off claims is restricted to undisputed or legally established amounts, with retention rights excluded outside the same contract.
Key findings
- German substantive law applies, with the UN sales convention excluded.
- There is no arbitration requirement, no class-action waiver and no jury or forum selection clause.
- RTL expressly refuses to participate in consumer alternative dispute resolution proceedings.
- Set-off is limited to claims that are undisputed or legally established.
- Your right to withhold payment is excluded unless the counterclaim arises from the same contract.
- A standard severability clause keeps the rest of the terms valid if one provision fails.
- No shortened claim deadlines are imposed, so statutory limitation periods apply.
Evidence from the document
Es gilt materielles deutsches Recht unter Ausschluss von UN-Kaufrecht.
Wir sind nicht zur Teilnahme an einem Streitbeilegungsverfahren vor einer Verbraucherschlichtungsstelle verpflichtet und sind dazu auch nicht bereit.
Der Kunde darf nur mit rechtskräftig festgestellten oder von RTL interactive nicht bestrittenen Forderungen aufrechnen.
Ein Zurückbehaltungsrecht des Kunden ist ausgeschlossen, es sei denn sein Gegenanspruch beruht auf demselben Vertragsverhältnis.
Recommendations
- If a dispute arises, expect to use the ordinary courts, because RTL has ruled out the consumer arbitration board route.
- Do not simply stop paying over a dispute, since the contract restricts set-off and withholding payment, and non-payment can get your access blocked.
- As an EU consumer you can normally sue at your place of residence, and the choice of German law does not remove the mandatory protections of your home country.
Ex-TerCo provides automated analysis of legal documents for informational purposes. This is not legal advice. Terms can change at any time.