A recent ruling by the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) has reopened the possibility that using ad blocking software could violate copyright law in Germany.

In a decision last month, the BGH – the final court of appeals on civil and criminal matters – partially overturned an appeals court decision in an 11-year legal dispute brought by publisher Axel Springer against Adblock Plus maker Eyeo GmbH.

The legal dispute dates back to 2014 when Axel and Springer first started fighting. The initial complaint was a competition lawsuit, resolved by the BGH in 2018. In parallel, Springer sued over copyright.