Freesat Freeview Euro Tv Sky The best kit, The best programmes
Instant guide to free digital TV channels
.. from june 2009’s issue.
Scandinavia & Baltics Want to see more?
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Scandinavia & Baltics Wotsat looks at free TV from Scandinavia & the Baltic States, and how to get it
NRK1 Tegnspråk is a sign-language channel
Toolkit What you need to receive Baltic free TV n Free-to-air DVB digital satellite receiver n 100cm dish with universal LNB aimed at Sirius 4 (4.8°E). See Channel Check for dish sizes required on other satellites
Free satellite television is surprisingly hard to find from countries around the Baltic Sea, but with a one metre dish (or bigger) and a little luck, viewers in the East of England should be able to tune in to a spread of channels, and there are even a couple on Astra 1 and Hot Bird. Satellite TV is very popular in Scandinavia, not least because it’s an easy way to reach remote locations. All four nations have long embraced pay-TV and encryption even for their national television channels and, unfortunately, the days of easily hacked encryption on D2-Mac are long behind us, so only Norway’s NRK1 – a sign-language channel broadcast for two hours per night – is available to expats or the simply curious. Finland offers the unusual cultural window of Toto TV, which specialises in modern chariot racing that you won’t find on British racecourses.
Embracing satellite TV The former Soviet states on the Baltic have begun to embrace satellite TV, not least because there are many of Estonians, Lithuanians and Latvians working around
Visjon Norge comes live from the Holy Land 2 What Satellite & Digital TV
Visjon is Christian TV for Norway
Europe since they joined the European Union in 2004. Lithuania even has a dedicated world channel for its expats, which is available in the United States as well as across Europe. Latvia’s TV5 is based in Riga but is aimed at the country’s Russian-speaking ethnic minority. It imports a lot of Russian TV, which is usually very difficult to pick up from the UK because Russian satellites are so far to the East. It’s also owned by Rupert Murdoch, who hasn’t yet got involved in pay-TV here.
Eurovision tops the poll Belarus offers two interesting choices: state-run Belarus TV, or Belsat, which is based in Poland to avoid harsh sanctions against television channels which criticise the current ruling regime. In our list of popular programmes one series is a clear winner in any of these countries; the Eurovision Song Contest. From picking their entry to the grand final, it trumps all the competition and they embrace the controversy. It’s easy to understand why the newer member states enjoy celebrating their nationhood on an international stage, but the contest’s enduring popularity in Scandinavia is at odds with its decline over here. Maybe they just like a party n
Next on Euro Spotlight
Belarus TV is the official voice of the country
Fem av de beste Five of TV’s most popular shows in Scandinavia and the Baltic States
Return Move
Belarus TV Talk show hosted by Alexander Martynenko. Belarus TV says: ‘The programme resembles a chess game, where the emotions are irrelevant.’
Kalyhanka
Belsat Belsat is an independent Belorussian channel broadcast out of Poland to avoid strict media controls in Belarus, so it’s not surprising that this comedy show has a rich vein of anti-establishment satire.
Mentu Kari
TV5 Riga Cop series about organised crime in St Petersburg, aimed at Latvia’s Russian-speaking ethnic minority.
Panorama
LTV World Lithuania’s main evening news programme is one of the most popular shows on domestic channel LTV.
Nytt på nytt
NRK1 Norwegian TV’s top show is ‘The News Anew’, based on Have I Got News For You.
n Free TV from Russia and The Caucuses
A peaceful view of Lithuanian life
LTV World is dedicated to Lithuania’s expat community
Euro spotlight Footprint
Enjoy a little local musical colour
You think the winters are bad here?
See Channel Check page 58 for frequencies
Free TV channels CHANNEL
Satellite
GENRE
CHANNEL
7°W
GENRE
Free Belorussian TV
Free Lithuanian TV
Belarus TV Belsat Perviy Muzykalnyi Telekanal
LTV World
40°E General entertainment 19.2°E, 4.8°E General entertainment 40°E Pop music
Toto TV
1°W
Chariot racing
Free Latvian TV Perviy Baltijskyi Muzykalnyi Kanal TV 5
4.8°E
Pop music
4.8°E
General entertainment
Expat entertainment
Free Norwegian TV NRK1 Vision Heaven Visjon Norge
Free Finnish TV
4.8°E
1°W 13°E 4.8°E, 1°W
Sign-language news Religion - Christian Religion - Christian
Free Swedish TV Kanal 10 Lifestyle TV
4.8°E 1°W
Religion - Christian Religion - Christian
Notes: There are no free TV channels from Denmark or Estonia
One of two dedicated Middle East/North Africa orbital slots, a quirky sidelobe allows Nilesat 101 to be picked up on a 1.2m dish in London; Nilesat 102 and Atlantic Bird 4 both require 2.3m dishes, and the same is expected of Nilesat 201 next year, which will ultimately replace the first-generation satellites. n Operator: Nilesat/Eutelsat
Satellites n Nilesat 101
Launched: Ariane 4, Kourou, April 28, 1998 Launch mass: 1,840kg Manufacturer: Matra Marconi Space Eurostar 2000 Transponders: 12 Ku-band EIRP: 50.1dBW Beams: North Africa & Middle East n Nilesat 102
Launched: Ariane 4, Kourou, August 17, 2000 Launch mass: 1,827kg Manufacturer: Astrium Eurostar 2000 Transponders: 12 Ku-band EIRP: 50.1dBW Beams: North Africa & Middle East
A lighter moment on Belsat TV
n Atlantic Bird 4 (formerly Hot Bird 4)
Launched: Ariane 4, Kourou, February 27, 1998 Launch mass: 2,900kg Manufacturer: Matra Marconi Space Eurostar 2000+ Transponders: 20 Ku-band EIRP: 50dBW Beams: Widebeam n Nilesat 201
Launched: Ariane 5 ECA, Kourou, February 2010 Launch mass: 3,200kg Manufacturer: Thales Alenia Spacebus 4000B2 Transponders: 24 Ku-band, 4 Ka-band EIRP: 50+dBW Beams: North Africa & Middle East
Nilesat’s official footprints aren’t encouraging for the UK Miracle TV – more religion from the North
Geography on the First Baltic Music Channel What Satellite & Digital TV 3