Content Provider
The content provider offers its customers a wide variety of content. According to the German Telemedia Act, this is a provider who “makes its own information available for use on the Internet”. The content can be news, information, games or other offers. Content providers make both their own and third-party content available. The conditions vary from provider to provider. While some provide the content free of charge, others charge for the use of the content.
Obtaining information on the Internet
Much use is made of the content of newspapers and news agencies on the Internet. Often, the articles published here can also be downloaded and saved. Particularly with content providers in the press area, there is freely usable content and content that can only be used by members or for a fee. In addition, various content providers also offer licensed images on the Internet. These can be downloaded and freely used for a small price, which usually depends on the image size or resolution.
Content providers – liability for content
For content providers, the question of liability for the content provided often arises. The German Telemedia Act assumes that the content provided is the provider’s own unless it is marked as third-party content. This is important in terms of liability, because the site operator is fully responsible for his own content. On the other hand, copyright infringements can lead to injunctive relief and claims for damages. Content providers must therefore check their published content carefully and generally mark third-party content as such.
Content providers: content for users and search engines
In the Internet age, more and more website operators are dependent on content from content providers. Texts and images are frequently bought together to provide users with information and to increase the ranking of their own web presence in search engines. Since the criteria of the search engines are becoming more and more demanding, site operators are also paying more and more attention to the quality and uniqueness of the content in order to increase the search engine ranking on the one hand and to avoid infringing the copyrights of third parties on the other. Content providers also often provide weather services, stock market prices or press reviews.
