under the leadership of riekel, the magazine developed into one of germany's most "enigmatic media brands". in 2001, the berlin daily, "der tagesspiegel", declared that the "bunte" was the new "key medium of our republic". whereas other magazines were struggling to make ends meet, the bunte was able to expand its market share. the publication moved into the center of the so-called "burda people group", which later also included the magazines "amica" and "tomorrow". in 2002, the bunte launched its first website in cooperation with t-online. by contrast, "bunte tv" was unsuccessful: the magazine aired on ard was cancelled after only six shows due to low ratings. in 2003, burda-verlag invested several million in the relaunch of the "bunte", including better paper quality and a more modern layout. despite declining circulation, the "bunte" was a business success in the years that followed. together with "focus", the "bunte" achieved the lion's share of its publisher's profits.