Germany’s n24 goes HD
June 15, 2011
By Chris Forrester
N24, a German all-news channel, will go HD on July 1st. N24 is also joining the SES Astra-backed HD+ system where its HD signals are encrypted other than for those viewers subscribing to the low-cost HD+ service.
N24 is the eleventh HD+ service on SES Astra, and follows Nickelodeon and Comedy Central which both added HD+ versions on June 1. , HD+ offers eleven free TV channels: RTL HD, Sat.1 HD, ProSieben HD, VOX HD, kabel eins HD, RTL II HD, SPORT1 HD, Nickelodeon HD, Comedy Central HD and sixx HD.
SES Astra now beams a total of 16 HDTV channels to German viewers (free plus HD+).
Wilfried Urner, CEO of HD Plus, said: “HD+ offers an attractive solution for broadcasters to deliver their programmes in high definition and adds significant value for the TV viewers who want to make use of their large flat screens and watch high quality TV content. The launch of Germany’s first news channel in HD quality is another proof for the success of HD+ and will further increase the variety of available HD channels in Germany. With the addition of N24, 16 of the most popular channels in Germany are now broadcasting their programmes in HD quality via satellite. This is only possible due to the success of HD+.”