Good 'Mourning,' You're Watching Death TV

PASSAU, Germany, Nov 2, 2007 — -- Etos TV, Europe's first channel devoted to death, goes on the air in Germany early next year, but people are already talking about it.

Backed in part by a German undertakers association, the channel will include documentaries on German cemeteries and talk show discussions about burial practices, and will offer on-air obituaries, for a fee.

Most Germans have always taken a very traditional stand on subjects like death and burials. But in recent years, many Germans have opted for simple, anonymous burials, an obvious threat to the future of funeral homes.

Enter media entrepreneur Wolf Tilmann Schneider who, along with the undertakers association, came up with the idea of a "Mourning Channel, " as it's been dubbed by some.

"Information on all aspects of daily life are in demand, so why not talk about death in the family and what it all means?" asks Schneider. "We will cater to people outside the 14-49 age groups. Other people may want information on how to make sure that the family is covered in the event of their death."

The motivation behind Schneider's idea is simple.

"Some 830,000 people die here a year," he told ABC News. "Some 2 million elderly are in care homes. It's a huge market out there. There is demand for information about death, inheritance law and insurance policies, to name but a few."

Rolf Lichtner, a spokesman for the undertakers association, explains, "This should not be seen as yet another advertising channel. In fact, advertising our product is secondary. What we want to see on that channel is information. Nobody likes to talk about death, but we want to bring it out in the open. We want them to learn about the culture surrounding death."

A central part of Etos TV will be the obituary service.

"For about $3,000, a photograph of a dead friend or relative will be shown on the screen, along with a spoken tribute. This will be done in a very respectful way, honoring the person. We would like them to be shown respect," says Lichtner. "The 90-second obituary will be repeated 10 times and then be available for distribution on the Internet."

For a higher fee, a short documentary can be produced about the deceased's life.

Both Schneider and Lichtner, assured ABC News that the program will not be morbid. "Rest assured, there will be very attractive and sometimes amusing stories," Schneider says.

"We all know about death and that we'll die eventually, but we hardly ever spend time to think or talk about it. There are so many aspects that we will focus on. Death itself is only one topic."

Not all Germans are warming to the idea of death TV. If it were up to Rudolf Freystadt, 83, a resident of Wessling, such topics should remain within the family. "I don't need a TV show talking about death. I have absolutely no intention to ever watch such a program," he told ABC News. "That sounds like yet another money-making invention to me."

His friend Peter Heppekausen, 82, who runs the local retiree club agreed. "No, we don't need a TV channel about death, we're much more interested in life and what we can make of it."