The broadcast of a German movie on the Thalidomide scandal brought the history of the scandal back into public awareness. Calls for more adequate compensation were growing louder. In 2008 Grünenthal, worried about its image, announced it would “voluntarily” pay another 50 Million Euros into the Contergan Foundation. This money was to be used as an additional payment to survivors once every year (on top of the monthly benefits that were provided by the German government). The German government matched Grünenthal’s contribution by putting another 50 Million Euros into the foundation.

Source: Sueddeutsche.de: Ein Film mit Nebenwirkungen (A Film with Side-Effects), Mai 17, 2010.