Stromberg (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtʁɔmbɛʁk]) is a German television series which is produced by Brainpool and broadcast on the commercial television channel ProSieben. The series was proclaimed as a copy of the BBC series The Office, although initially the producers claimed it was based on a character from a past ProSieben comedy, in spite of many elements resembling The Office. An "inspired by" credit was given to the creators of The Office, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, after the BBC threatened ProSieben with legal action. The first season, which appeared in 2004, was made up of eight episodes. A second season of ten episodes, although not initially planned, was launched on 11 September 2005. A third season of eight episodes was launched on 5 March 2007. A fourth season was launc