German publishers anticipate free newspaper offensive

 In contrast to Switzerland, free newspapers have not yet been able to establish themselves in Germany. The last German free newspaper failed seven years ago in Cologne due to resistance from established regional publishers. Now, however, German publishers are apparently preparing to compete with a national free daily newspaper, as the German newspaper Handelsblatt reports. There are fears of an offensive by foreign newspaper publishers or investors. "It is no longer a question of if, but only when the next attempt at a free newspaper will be launched in Germany," one publisher told Handelsblatt. The Federal Association of German Newspaper Publishers (BDZV) also expects a new attack. The German media groups already have defense plans in the drawer. DuMont Schauberg has joined forces with other publishers to prepare for the launch of free newspapers. Axel Springer is also prepared: "We can counter with our own free newspaper within a few days," a spokeswoman told Handelsblatt. Axel Springer owns the tabloid Bild. It would probably be most affected by the launch of a free newspaper. "Every day without a free newspaper is a good day" is therefore the motto at the company's Berlin headquarters. Years ago, Springer and DuMont jointly distributed a free newspaper published by the Norwegian Schibsted publishing house in the so-called "Cologne newspaper war".
German publishers are apparently also concerned about developments in Switzerland. Handelsblatt discusses the changes in the newspaper landscape here in detail.