Opencast

Opencast is the central video management system at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU). With Opencast, you can record, edit, manage, and publish video and audio content (e.g., lectures, presentations, or podcasts). Existing audio and video files can also be processed.
Published content can be embedded, for example, via Moodle or other websites. Access to content can be restricted to specific user groups, allowing you to maintain control over the distribution of your recordings.

Opencast is technically operated by the Leibniz Computing Center of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences (LRZ).

Instructions for use can be found at:
https://kb.elearning.lmu.de/Opencast

Please also note the data usage guidelines and privacy policy for Opencast.

The staff council has approved the use of Opencast.

General Requirements

You must be at least 18 years old. Minors may use Opencast only with the consent of their legal guardians.
To log in to Opencast, you will need your personal LMU user ID. Access is strictly personal. You may not share your login information with third parties.
Use is permitted exclusively for professional, scientific, or academic purposes.
Use for personal purposes is not permitted.

By activating your user account, you agree to the currently applicable

• LRZ Terms of Use
• LMU Terms of Use

in their current versions.

Visibility of Your Data

The content you upload to Opencast is initially visible only to you. However, as soon as your content is linked to other websites (e.g., on moodle.lmu.de), the metadata (e.g., presenters or a brief description of the content) will also become visible to other viewers.

Security

Security incidents, suspected security vulnerabilities, or misuse of the system must be reported immediately to it.security@verwaltung.uni-muenchen.de.

Permitted Content

You may use Opencast exclusively for content whose publication is legally permitted. In particular, you may not
store or publish any special categories of personal data pursuant to Art. 9 of the GDPR, any data subject to professional secrecy (§ 203 of the German Criminal Code), or any other security-critical information
via Opencast. Likewise, no

• illegal,
• pornographic,
• obscene,
• offensive,
• libelous,
• defamatory,
• threatening,
• inciting hatred,
• or racist

content may be posted.

Also prohibited are content that could significantly damage the reputation of LMU or the University of Munich Medical Center.

• Advertising of any kind,
• malware,
• manipulation

Links

When linking to external or internal LMU websites, you must ensure that

• they do not contain any illegal content,
• that the link is provided in accordance with the law,
• and that no technical protection measures are circumvented.

Legal Requirements

Before publishing content, you must ensure that all legal requirements are met.

In particular, you must comply with copyright law, the personal rights of the individuals involved, and data protection regulations.

You need a consent form to record and display recognizable individuals in video or audio materials. As the party directly responsible for the publication, you must retain these forms—among other things, for evidentiary purposes—for 30 years after publication (Section 199(3)(2) of the German Civil Code [BGB]) (at least until the materials are permanently deleted). A template for Opencast can be found at
Declaration of Consent for Video Recording of Individuals (PDF, 182 KB)(PDF, 182 KB) (German)
EV_LMUcast_Okt2025_ausfuellbar_EN.pdf (PDF, 267 KB) (PDF, 274 KB) (English)

Behavioral and Performance Monitoring

Information from Opencast may not be used to monitor or evaluate the behavior or performance of other LMU members.

Confidentiality

Opencast is generally suitable for processing information up to and including confidentiality class V2.

The currently applicable LMU Information Classification Policy (PDF, 98 KB) must be observed.

Guidelines for Team Managers

If personal data is processed beyond the scope of the default settings (e.g., through additional content), the data protection requirements must be reviewed separately.

Please feel free to contact your data protection contact person or LMU’s Data Protection Officer (datenschutz@lmu.de) for advice on this matter.

Please follow these rules to use Opencast responsibly.

Note: Opencast may occasionally be temporarily unavailable due to maintenance work. We will notify you in a timely manner if this is the case.

If you publish online lectures or other content using Opencast, you are responsible for that content. This also applies if you commission someone else (e.g., teaching assistants or staff members) to create the materials. Please note: Your content must not infringe on the rights of others, such as copyright. LMU may delete content if it violates the law. In such cases, your video may be blocked, or your access to Opencast may be restricted or revoked. Legal action may also be taken. LMU is liable only if it acts with gross negligence or intentionally commits an error.

If your content infringes on copyrights, you must indemnify LMU against any claims by third parties.

Regular checks are conducted to verify whether registered users in Opencast are members of LMU.

The status of individuals known to the Opencast system (e.g., as viewers or users with editing rights) is regularly reviewed. If these individuals leave LMU, their personal data is generally deleted from the system. If these individuals have editing rights to materials (video, audio), a preliminary check is conducted to determine whether other LMU members also have editing rights to these materials. If this is not the case, the materials are taken down.

If legal or organizational issues (e.g., copyright infringements or lack of authority) are identified, a reasonable deadline is set for rectification. If the identified issues are not resolved within this deadline or if the responsible person can no longer be reached, the affected content or series will be deleted.

Responsible for data processing

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich

Data Processing Service

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
IT Services Division
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich
VI@verwaltung.uni-muenchen.de

General questions and support

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
IT Services Division
eUniversity
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich
Support address: opencast@lmu.de

The terms of use, data usage notices and data protection information as amended shall apply.

As of July 28, 2026

Opencast is a web-based application for recording, editing, and publishing lectures, presentations, and events (video and audio files), among other things. To edit video and audio materials with Opencast, you need an LMU user ID. With Opencast, LMU members can publish video and audio materials online and make them available to viewers.

Opencast uses the Shibboleth Identity Provider (IdP) authentication and authorization infrastructure provided by the Leibniz Computing Center (LRZ). For more information on Shibboleth, visit the LRZ website at Shibboleth and DFN . The Opencast server is also located at the Leibniz Computing Center of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences (LRZ). A data processing agreement is in place with the LRZ.

Opencast is open-source software and is operated by the LRZ.

By using Opencast, you also agree to the LMU’s Terms of Use for Information Processing Systems [Link: https://www.lmu.de/de/die-lmu/struktur/zentrale-universitaetsverwaltung/information-and-communication-technology-dezernat-vi/benutzungsrichtlinien-fuer-informationsverarbeitungssysteme/index.html].
Please also review our terms of use for Opencast [Link: https://www.lmu.de/de/die-lmu/struktur/zentrale-universitaetsverwaltung/it-services-division/it-servicedesk/zentrale-it-angebote/lmucast/]

When you use Opencast, personal data about you (“personal data”) is stored and processed when you log in to Opencast. Without logging in, you cannot edit or view video or audio materials within the web application.

The purpose of data processing in Opencast is the creation and online publication of video and audio materials for teaching purposes (e.g., recordings of lectures, presentations, or other courses), public activities at LMU (e.g., recordings of conferences or public expert discussions), or as supplementary support for research, teaching, or administration (e.g., video tutorials). Furthermore, data processing is necessary for resolving technical issues (e.g., for internal review of security systems and to ensure internal network and information security in accordance with Art. 6(1) of the Bavarian Data Protection Act (BayDSG)).

You may use Opencast only within the scope of your affiliation with LMU. Opencast is not intended for the creation of private videos and must not be used for this purpose. Likewise, no materials containing data requiring special protection within the meaning of Article 9(1) of the GDPR (e.g., health or patient data) may be created or published using Opencast.

We process your personal data that we have lawfully obtained about you in connection with your activities at LMU (Article 4(2) of the Bavarian Data Protection Act (BayDSG)). There is no performance or behavioral monitoring based on your use of Opencast.

We process your data in accordance with and based on the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Bavarian Data Protection Act (BayDSG), and other applicable data protection regulations.

The processing of personal data for the use of Opencast is carried out in accordance with Article 6(1)(a) of the GDPR (consent) as well as in the context of the performance of official duties pursuant to Article 6(1)(e), (2), and (3) of the GDPR in conjunction with Article 4(1) of the BayDSG.

• The following personal data is processed in Opencast:

• • Last Name
  • First name
  • Video
  • Sound or audio recordings
  • LMU user ID
  • Work email address
  • LMU or LRZ email address
  • IP address
  • Affiliation status with LMU (student, employee, including organizational unit within LMU)
  • Log data

To enable the use of Opencast for the purposes described above, personal data must be transferred to other institutions:

• to the LRZ

Data transfers are conducted in compliance with data protection requirements. Data is transferred within the scope of the GDPR or to countries with an appropriately adequate and recognized level of data protection. No unauthorized data transfers are made to a third country or to an international organization.

Opencast uses so-called cookies (text files) that are stored on your computer and are technically necessary for using the service. These are session cookies, which ensure that you do not have to re-enter your login credentials each time you access the service. Session cookies are deleted when the Opencast session ends.

Personal data is permanently deleted as soon as the individuals recognized by the system leave LMU and lose their status as LMU members.

• Students: Data is deleted upon withdrawal from LMU (usually at the end of the semester) or upon completion of their studies at LMU.
• Employees: Deletion occurs upon the termination of employment with LMU. Regardless of the individuals’ status, those responsible will delete all video or audio content as soon as it is no longer necessary for its original purpose. This is the case, for example, when lecture recordings are no longer current in terms of content.
• Withdrawal of Consent: The recording and publication of video and audio content are carried out exclusively on the basis of the express consent of the individuals identifiable in the materials. Affected individuals may withdraw their consent at any time. To do so, please contact the individuals responsible for publication directly. Following a withdrawal of consent, published recordings (video or audio) that contain personal or personally identifiable information will first be removed from the platforms (unpublished).
• Deletion Following Withdrawal: If data processing is based solely on consent, the data will be permanently deleted following withdrawal. This does not apply if statutory retention obligations preclude it or if the rights of third parties (e.g., copyrights of other involved individuals) must be respected. System-generated log files are used exclusively for information security purposes and to ensure normal operation (they provide valuable information for system maintenance). The log files are deleted after 30 days.

Responsible for data processing

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich

Data Processing Service

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
IT Services Division
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich
euniversity@lmu.de

General questions and support

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
IT Services Division, eUniversity Concepts and Services
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich
opencast@lmu.de

Contact details of the Data Protection Officer at LMU

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
— Data Protection Officer —
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich
Tel.: 089-2180-2414
https://www.lmu.de/datenschutz

Information on your existing rights

You have the right to obtain information about the data stored about you (Art. 15 GDPR). If inaccurate personal data is processed, you have the right to rectification (Art. 16 GDPR). In addition, you have the right to erasure (Art. 17 GDPR), objection (Art. 21 GDPR), restriction (Art. 18 GDPR) and revocation of consent for the future. The legality of the data processing carried out on the basis of the consent until the revocation is not affected by this.

In addition, according to Art. 77 GDPR, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority. The data protection supervisory authority responsible for the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München is the Bavarian State Commissioner for Data Protection (Internet: www.datenschutz-bayern.de).

If you wish to exercise your rights or if you have any questions, please contact the relevant data processing service (see above). The responsible unit will check whether the legal requirements for this are met and then take the necessary measures.

The terms of use, data usage notices and data protection information as amended shall apply.
As of July, 2026

Information pursuant to § 5 DDG (Digitale-Dienste-Gesetz) and § 18 Abs. 2 Medienstaatsvertrag (MStV)

The Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich is a state institution of the Free State of Bavaria and a legally competent personnel body under public law (Article 4(1), first sentence, of the BayHIG). It is legally represented by the President, Professor Dr. med. Dr. h.c. Matthias H. Tschöp.

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 Munich

Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 2180 - 0
Contact: Poststelle@Verwaltung.Uni-Muenchen.de

Courts, authorities, lawyers and all other authorized users have the possibility to communicate confidentially and securely with LMU via the special authority mailbox. In other cases where you wish to send us an encrypted message, please use the public S/MIME (X509-) certificate to encrypt your message.

Bavarian State Ministry for Science and Art
Salvatorstraße 2
80327 Munich
Website: https://www.km.bayern.de/index_wm.html

Sales tax identification number according to § 27 a VAT Act: DE811205325

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
The respective institutions or the respective playlist owners are responsible for the content offered on the video management system Opencast.

The information has been compiled to the best of our knowledge. However, errors cannot be ruled out with absolute certainty. Only the provisions in the pertinent legal bases (such as laws, ordinances or statues) are legally binding.

We cannot assume any liability for the up-to-dateness, correctness, completeness and availability of the information provided at any time.

We are not liable for any damage caused by the use of this website. This exclusion of liability does not apply insofar as the provisions of § 839 BGB (liability in case of breach of official duties) are relevant. We are not liable for any damage caused by malicious software or the installation or use of software when accessing or downloading data.

The disclaimer does not apply to information falling within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 (General Data Protection Regulation). Correctness and up-to-dateness are guaranteed for this information.

This website contains cross-references (“links”) to other websites of LMU or to other external third-party online resources. The linked internet pages will automatically open in a new window.

By means of the cross-reference, LMU provides access to this external content (§ 8 Telemedia Law). LMU is not responsible for the displayed external content since it does not cause the transmission of the information, does not select the addressee of the transmitted information and has not selected or altered the information transmitted.

Nor does an automatic short-term cache of this external information take place because of the chosen call-up and linking methodology by LMU, and no responsibility of LMU ensues from this external content.

However, when linking to these internet services for the first time, LMU has checked the external content to determine whether it triggers a possible civil or criminal responsibility. We do not receive automatic information about changes to third-party internet offers and cannot permanently check if changes have taken place. This is why we cannot take responsibility for them either. The respective providers of the third-party internet offers are exclusively liable for illegal, incorrect or incomplete content and in particular for damages arising from the use or non-use of information from third parties. Nevertheless, we make every effort to check the referenced links regularly in relation to the above criteri

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München is a corporation under public law. It is legally represented by its President, Prof. Dr. Bernd Huber.