Overview of television in the Netherlands
Television in the Netherlands
was officially
introduced in 1951
. In the
Netherlands
, the
television
market is divided between a number of commercial networks, such as
RTL Nederland
, and a system of public broadcasters sharing three channels,
NPO 1
,
NPO 2
, and
NPO 3
. Imported programmes (except those for children), as well as news interviews with responses in a foreign language, are almost always shown in their original language, with
subtitles
.
[1]
Reception
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]
In the Netherlands, television can be watched analog or digital (the latter with the option of
HDTV
or
UHD
). Over 2018, 89.2% of Dutch viewers received television digitally.
[2]
Analogue television is only available via some cable operators and some fiber to the home providers, since the Dutch government ended analogue reception via airwaves in 2006. Dutch largest cable company
Ziggo
began to phase out the analogue signal in 2018.
[3]
[4]
Watching digital television is possible through a variety of ways, the most common being:
Which television channels can be received is heavily dependent on the operator and in most cases also the channel package that is paid for. However, there is a small selection of channels that every operator
must carry
. Since 2014, these are the following channels:
[5]
Public channels
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]
The
Netherlands
has three nationwide channels for publicly funded television (
NPO
). These channels can only make a fixed maximum amount of money from commercials. These commercials never interrupt broadcasts, and are only shown in between shows. The broadcasting organisations that use these channels are basically representative of the Dutch society. Every broadcasting company has members and the number of members gives them a status that is connected to the number of hours of broadcasting. Acceptance or refusal of entry is decided politically on the guidance of public opinion.
In 2005, there was a sharp political debate over government plans to cut funding to public broadcasters and to abolish statutory broadcaster
NPS
.
National
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]
The three national television channels are:
Thematic
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]
The three digital television channels that are provided by the
Nederlandse Publieke Omroep
organisation, are:
International
[
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]
There is also an international public channel:
- BVN
, It shows the best of Dutch public television for
Dutch
viewers abroad. It was also formerly shared with
Belgium
's publicly funded Flemish television channel
VRT
.
Regional
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]
Most regions and provinces have their own television channel as well. These also receive government funding:
Commercial channels
[
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]
RTL Nederland
[
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]
Talpa Network
[
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]
Paramount Networks EMEAA
[
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]
Warner Bros. Discovery
[
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]
The Walt Disney Company
[
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]
VodafoneZiggo
[
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]
AMC Networks International
[
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]
NBCUniversal International Networks
[
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]
SPI International
[
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]
BBC Studios
[
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]
A&E Networks
[
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]
Stingray Digital
[
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]
Muziekkiosk
[
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]
RadioCorp BV
[
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]
Other
[
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]
The following (international) commercial channels broadcast localized versions of their programs:
- 192TV
- Curiosity Channel
- DanceTelevision
- Duck TV
- Euronews
- Family 7
, conservative Christian channel
- FashionTV
- Horse & Country TV
- Love Nature
- Njam!
- ONS
, Dutch Nostalgia Channel
- OutTV
, lesbian lifestyle
- Pebble TV
, Dutch Children's Channel
- Tommy TV
- Xite
, Dutch Music Channel
- AFTV-African Television
(English), available in
The Hague
and online, targeting Africans in the Netherlands
- NOS TV
(
Papiamento
), available on
Bonaire
and online; local Bonaire TV station.
- RTV-7
, (Papiamento, English); Rebroadcast of
Antillian
TV Channels in the Netherlands
Foreign domestic channels
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]
While there are many localised versions of international channels meant for the Dutch market, many television providers also broadcast 'domestic television' networks as part of the basic subscription package. Other 'domestic' channels may be received as part of extended packages. Many basic subscriptions include:
Belgium
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]
United Kingdom
[
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]
Germany
[
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]
France
[
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]
Italy
[
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]
Spain
[
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]
Other
[
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]
High-definition
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]
In the Netherlands customers can receive
high-definition television
channels by cable or satellite. Until 2018 there was no terrestrial HD service available. KPN started to switch its digital terrestrial television platform to the
DVB-T2
HEVC standard in October 2018,
[7]
this transition completed on 9 July 2019.
[8]
The first trials with high-definition television in the Netherlands began in 2006 with the broadcast of the
2006 World Cup
in HD. After the trial the larger cable companies continued a HD service with a small number of channels such as
National Geographic Channel HD
,
Discovery HD Showcase
,
History HD
,
Film1 HD
and
Sport1 HD
. The demand for HD was low because no Dutch network had made the move to HD. Broadcasting in
widescreen
and the quality of the
standard-definition
PAL
signal was good enough for most people.
Since the 2006 trials, none of the main Dutch networks made the move to HD. This changed in the summer of 2008 when from 1 June 2008 until 24 August 2008, the
Netherlands Public Broadcasting
(NPO) organisations made their primary channel,
Nederland 1
temporary available in HD. This made it possible to broadcast
Euro 2008
, the
2008 Tour de France
, and the
2008 Summer Olympics
in HD and additionally allowed them to test their systems before the scheduled launch of their permanent HD service in early 2009. The NPO planned to launch their permanent HD service with HD versions of their three channels
Nederland 1
,
Nederland 2
, and
Nederland 3
. Most of the programming in the early stages consisted of upscaled material from their SD channels as in time more programs became available in HD.
[9]
Technicolor Netherlands
[
nl
]
, the company responsible for the technical realisation of the broadcasts of the NPOs television and radio channels, began the summer 2008 test broadcast of Nederland 1 HD in
720p
/50 as the
European Broadcasting Union
(EBU) recommends. During the test period an additional
1080i
/25 version of the channel was made available to the cable companies because of quality complaints from viewers. In 2009 the NPO decided to adopt the 1080i/25 HD standard.
[10]
The main commercial broadcasting organizations in the Netherlands the
SBS Broadcasting Group
(
NET 5
,
SBS 6
,
Veronica
) and the channels of
RTL Nederland
followed in HD via cable and satellite, using the same HD standard as the NPO.
Ultra-high-definition
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]
The first television channels in
4K
UHD
were officially launched in the Netherlands in 2017. In April 2017, satellite provider
CanalDigitaal
added Insight TV 4K UHD in its channel line-up.
[11]
After more than a year of testing,
KPN
launched ultra-high-definition television on 1 July 2017, with
Xite 4K
and Hispasat 4K TV.
[12]
[13]
Eurosport 4K
launched in the Netherlands on 5 June 2018.
[14]
NPO 1
launched its first trials with ultra-high-definition television through KPN, CanalDigitaal and some minor networks on 14 June 2018, using the
HLG standard
.
[15]
[16]
[17]
Ziggo Sport
is available in
UHD
from March 2021.
[18]
Defunct or rebranded channels
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- 13th Street
(30 May 2007 ? 1 July 2016)
- Action Now!
(16 May 2006 ? 31 May 2009)
- Adventure One
(1999 ? 2007), replaced by
National Geographic Wild
(2007?present)
- BBC Prime
(1995 ? 2009), replaced by
BBC Entertainment
(November 2009 ? 31 March 2024)
- Boomerang
(5 June 2005 ? 18 March 2023), replaced by
Cartoonito
(18 March 2023 ? present)
- The Box
/
The Box Comedy
(1995 ? 30 April 2007), replaced by
Comedy Central
(30 April 2007 ? present)
- CineNova
(18 May 2000 ? 18 May 2005)
- CMT Europe
(October 1992 ? 31 March 1998)
- Comedy Central Extra
(1 November 2011 ? 31 December 2022)
- Comedy Central Family
(1 October 2008 ? 31 May 2018), its programmes merged with
Comedy Central Extra
- Consumenten 24
(formerly
Consumenten TV
)
- DanceTrippin TV
(2011 ? May 2018), rebranded by
DanceTelevision
(May 2018 ? present)
- Discovery Civilisation
(1 October 1998 - 18 April 2008), rebranded by Discovery World (18 April 2008 - 31 December 2020)
- Discovery Travel & Living
(September 1999 ? 4 July 2011), replaced by
Investigation Discovery
and
TLC
(4 July 2011 ? present)
- Disney Junior
(3 May 2010 ? 1 April 2019), formerly known as Playhouse Disney.
- ESPN America
(5 December 2002 ? 1 August 2013)
- ESPN Classic
(13 March 2006 ? 1 August 2013)
- Euro 7
(19 October 1994 ? 28 March 1997)
- Family 24
- Film1 Sundance
(1 March 2012 ? 31 August 2017) /
Film1 Festival
(1 February 2006 ? 1 March 2012)
- Filmnet
(1984 ? 1997), replaced by Canal+ (1997 ? 2006), followed by
Film1
(1 February 2006 ? present)
- Fine Living
(1 September 2015 ? 31 January 2019)
- Food Network
(22 April 2010
[19]
? 31 January 2019)
- Fox
(19 August 2013 - 31 October 2023), rebranded by
Star Channel
(1 November 2023 - present)
- Fox Kids
(2 August 1997 ? 12 February 2005), rebranded by
Jetix
(13 February 2005 ? 31 December 2009) followed by
Disney XD
(1 January 2010 ? present)
- Fox Life
(7 September 2009 ? 31 December 2016)
- Fox Sports Eredivisie
, 3 pay-TV channels (29 August 2008 ? 1 January 2021), rebranded by
ESPN
- Fox Sports International
3 pay-TV channels (17 August 2013 ? 1 January 2021), rebranded by
ESPN
- Geschiedenis 24
(formerly
Geschiedenis
)
- GoedTV (April 2006 ? 6 December 2015)
- Hallmark Channel
(June 1995 ? 20 July 2011)
- HBO 1/2/3
(9 February 2012 ? 31 December 2016)
- Het Gesprek
(2 October 2007 ? 21 August 2010)
- JimJam
(10 October 2006 ? 1 March 2018)
- Kindernet
(1 March 1988 ? 1 September 2003, 4 April 2011 ? 1 November 2013)
- MGM Channel
(2001 ? 5 November 2014), replaced by
AMC
(5 November 2014 ? 31 December 2018)
- MisdaadNet (1 July 2008 ? 1 September 2011), replaced by
RTL Crime
(1 September 2011 ? present)
- Motors TV
(1 September 2000 ? 28 February 2017), rebranded by Motorsport.tv (1 March 2017 ? 30 September 2018)
- MTV Brand New
(1 August 2006 - 31 January 2021), replaced by
MTV Hits
(1 February 2021 - present)
- MTV Music 24
(1 September 2011 - 25 May 2021), replaced by
MTV 90s
(26 May 2021 - present)
- NBC Super Channel
(30 January 1987 ? 30 June 1998), replaced by
National Geographic
(1 July 1998 ? present)
- NostalgieNet
(1 January 2006 ? 13 September 2015), rebranded by
ONS
(13 September 2015 ? present)
- NPO 3 Extra
(31 October 2006 ? 25 December 2018), between 2006 and 2014 named 101 TV and between 2014 and 2018 named NPO 101.
- NPO Doc
(1 December 2004 as Holland Doc 24 ? 1 July 2016)
- NPO Humor TV
(15 November 2006 as Humor TV 24 ? 1 July 2016)
- NPO Nieuws
(1 December 2004 as Journaal 24 - 15 December 2021)
- NPO Zappelin Extra
(30 May 2009 as Z@ppelin / Z@pp 24, renamed by NPO Zapp Xtra between 2014 and 2018, ceased on 15 December 2021)
- Revolt
(1 November 2019 - 31 January 2021)
- RTL-Veronique
(2 October 1989 ? 17 September 1990), rebranded by
RTL 4
(18 September 1990 ? present)
- Spike
(1 October 2015 - 24 May 2022), rebranded by
Paramount Network
(24 May 2022 - present)
- Spirit 24
(formerly
Geloven
)
- Sport 7
(18 August 1996 ? 8 December 1996)
- Sportnet
(29 March 1984 ? 1 March 1993), merged with
Eurosport
(5 February 1989 ? present)
- Sterren 24
(formerly
Sterren.nl
)
- Stingray Brava
(2007 ? 1 March 2019), replaced by
Stingray Classica
(1 March 2019 ? present)
- SuperSport (1995 ? 1997), replaced by Canal+ (1997 ? 2006) followed by
Sport1
(1 February 2006 ? 12 November 2015), rebranded by
Ziggo Sport Totaal
(12 November 2015 ? present)
- Syfy
(30 May 2007 ? 1 July 2016)
- Talpa
(13 August 2005 ? 15 December 2005), rebranded by
Tien
(16 December 2005 ? 17 August 2007) followed by
RTL 8
(18 August 2007 ? present)
- TMF
(1 May 1995 ? 1 September 2011)
- TMF Dance
(1 May 2005 ? 31 December 2011)
- TMF NL
(1 May 2005 ? 31 December 2011)
- TMF Pure
(1 May 2005 ? 31 December 2011)
- TNT Classic Movies
(17 September 1993 ? 15 October 1999) rebranded by TCM (15 October 1999 ? 1 January 2014)
- TNT
(24 January 2013 ? 1 January 2014)
- Travel Channel
(1996
[20]
? 31 January 2019)
- TV10
(never launched due to license problems, 1989)
- TV10 Gold
(1 May 1995 ? 31 January 1996), rebranded a couple of times afterwards. First by TV10 (1 February 1996 ? 18 December 1998) followed by FOX (19 December 1998 - August 1999),
Fox 8
(September 1999 ? 30 April 2001),
V8
(1 May 2001 ? 19 September 2003) and finally by
Veronica
(20 September 2003 ? present)
- Veronica
(1 September 1995 ? 1 April 2001), rebranded by
Yorin
(2 April 2001 ? 11 August 2005), and again rebranded by
RTL 7
(12 August 2005 ? present)
- VH1
(June 1999 - 2 August 2021), rebranded by
MTV 00s
(2 August 2021 - present)
- VH1 Classic
(30 November 2004 ? 5 October 2020), rebranded by
MTV 80s
(5 October 2020 ? present)
- Viceland
(1 March 2017 ? 31 October 2019), rebranded by VICEtv (1 November 2019 ? 24 August 2020)
- Vesta TV
(October 1995 ? July 1996)
- Weerkanaal (15 February 2006 ? December 2008), rebranded by
Weer en Verkeer
(December 2008 ? 1 October 2013)
- Ziggo Sport Extra
(12 November 2015 - 28 February 2021), rebranded by
Ziggo Sport Tennis
(1 March 2021 - present)
- Zone Club
(1998 ? 1 April 2010)
- Zone Horror
(30 October 2006 ? 1 July 2009)
- Zone Reality
(10 October 2002 ? 2 December 2012), rebranded by
CBS Reality
(2 December 2012 ? 31 December 2023)
Television in other languages
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To serve those who have another native language than Dutch, there are few television channels in the Netherlands broadcasting in one of the regional languages of The Netherlands. Those broadcasting in English usually target an international audience as well. Most of these channels broadcast through the internet only or have a very limited broadcasting area, with Omrop Fryslan as most notable exception. These channels are:
- Omrop Fryslan
(
Frisian
), public access regional broadcaster in the province of Friesland
- Froeks.tv
(Frisian), web-only channel for Friesland
- Radio Netherlands Worldwide
(
English
), produces vodcasts on their website in English
- ThreeNL
(English), reruns of Dutch public access programmes either English subtitled or dubbed
- AFTV-African Television
(English), available in
The Hague
and online, targeting Africans in The Netherlands
- NOS TV
(
Papiamento
), available on
Bonaire
and online; local Bonaire TV station.
- RTV-7
(Papiamento, English), available on Ziggo, XS4ALL and KPN. Rebroadcast of
Antillian
TV Channels in the Netherlands
Timeline
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See also
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]
References
[
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]
External links
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]
Television in Europe
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Sovereign states
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States with limited
recognition
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Dependencies and
other entities
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