Page "Cinema of Germany" Paragraph 21

From the mid-1980s the spread of videocassette recorders and the arrival of private TV channels such as RTL Television provided new competition for theatrical film distribution.

Cinema attendance, having rallied slightly in the late 1970s after an all-time low of 115. 1 million visits in 1976, dropped sharply again from the mid-1980s to end at just 101. 6 million visits in 1989.

However, the availability of a back catalogue of films on video also allowed for a different relationship between the viewer and an individual film, while private TV channels brought new money into the film industry and provided a launch pad from which new talent could later move into film.