German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) launches a new version of English-language global information channel on 22 June. The 24-hour channel aims to take its place among the world’s best-known German brands. The Mercedes of information, if you will.

DW’s plan is to “redefine the information agenda with a committed vision of how next generation news should evolve”.

The 60-year-old broadcaster’s new positioning is a significant shift away from the low-key modesty that has defined DW in the past.

Some of this is because of director general Peter Limbourg’s two decades in the private sector before he took the DW post towards the end of 2013. But mostly the new attitude reflects changing realities in Germany and in the country’s status on the global stage.

“We are not playing second league,” Limbourg says. “My ambition, and the ambition of Deutsche Welle, is that we play on the same level as other big stations,” he told delegates at Media Partners Asia’s (MPA) Asia Pacific Video Operators Summit (APOS) in Bali in April.

The new DW reflects a changed Germany. “Thirty years ago we were probably the most boring country in the world. This has changed since reunification [of East and West German]... Our USP is that we’re German. We are a strong country in Europe, and the German voice is worth listening to,” Limbourg says.

DW’s new tagline is “made for minds” and the Bonn-based global broadcaster is going for a direct line to intelligence. This is both as a compliment to DW viewers and as a core value of the people who actually make and market the channel. Limbourg says the tagline was created internally, and has the authenticity of being rooted in the reasons driving DW staffers to do what they do every day.

“There is so much information, propaganda, rumours online. We are delivering high-quality journalism. ‘Made for minds’ fits with the way DW approaches news, and with the energy involved in producing it,” Limbourg says.

The launch campaign revolves around “local heroes” – “local heroes motivate instead of standing in the way”; “local heroes use curiosity to move past fear”; “local heroes have minds of their own”.

Limbourg says a German news channel can compete on the international stage in the same way other German products can and do – with quality. “Germany has proven that it can deliver good products,” he says.

Even so, linear news is challenged everywhere. “Linear television is still there and is still important,” Limbourg says. Linear television, he adds, is “not the fax machine of today. It’s more the refrigerator in the kitchen. It will always be there but it doesn’t hinder you from buying more digital equipment for your kitchen”.

This means ongoing investment in linear. “People still watch more than 300 minutes a day of TV worldwide,” he says, adding: “We will continue to invest because we want a strong brand. But we will also invest in programming for younger audiences via mobile, online and social media”.

“Young viewers want immediacy and this is what we are trying to do. But, still, linear TV is important, particularly live TV,” Limbourg says.

The new DW has much more news than it had before, with bulletins every half hour, time-shifted prime time for Asia, and a dedicated daily one hour on Asia. “The whole Asian prime time is directed at Asia,” Limbourg says.

Asia’s sensitivities to various newsworthy situations are dealt with simply. “The news should be correct,” Limbourg says. “This is the bottom line. And so you have to have at least two sources before you produce it. Whether news is well heard by governments, this is not anything we can think about, or do anything about. We shouldn’t think about how people might block us. We should do our job and do good journalism,” he adds.

Sports – including Germany’s Bundesliga – is part of the plan. Kick Off, for instance, covers all things football. But it won’t be live; “the rights will ruin us,” Limbourg says.

In addition to using correspondents in key markets, DW will work with broadcast partners around the world to add local content to its international service. Co-production is a focus, although no target number of co-produced hours has been set. “We are very open to co-production. In the past, we were a bit more reluctant because everything had to be produced at DW and sent out from DW,” Limbourg says.

DW’s 30 radio/TV/online languages – including Hindi and Bengali – will give the new channel access to stories from different parts of the world. “That means we can be a bit faster than others in getting interesting and exclusive stories,” Limbourg says, adding: “In the end that’s what it’s about – stories”.