Sky Deutschland Increases Prices For Bar, Restaurant Owners Ahead Of Bundesliga Start

German pay-TV operator Sky Deutschland "drastically increased its prices for bar and restaurant owners ahead of last weekend's Bundesliga start," according to Alexander Krei of DWDL. A Munich bar owner said that he will have to pay €1,100 ($1,450) per month, which is an increase of €400 ($528) in comparison to last season. He said, "That's more than €13,000 ($17,150) per year, that's almost impossible to offset." Despite the "outrage" the price increases caused among bar and restaurant owners, Sky "is not willing to rethink its price structure," which is, among other things, based on the size of an establishment. Sky spokesperson Jörg Allgäuer said that the "industry generates additional revenue" of €1.2B ($1.6B) annually due to the Sky offer. He added that the business model "has seen positive growth rates, with the number of restaurant and bar customers rising by 12% during the previous year" (DWDL, 8/25).