Germany forum < English TV in Germany

  • Gabriela Zafira

    English TV in Germany via Satellite

    posted by  Gabriela Zafira in Germany forum 

    There are some English channels on cable, but if you really want a variety of English TV in Germany you're better of with satellite.

    Everyone's first thought is of course Sky. A normal sized dish will pull in all of the Astra channels all over Germany. Last time I looked, you could get Sky news, CNN, Eurosport, and CNBC in the clear. Also, Bloombergs financial news was available for a few hours each day. Everything else is encrypted and watching it is a breach of copyright whether you pay for a subscription or not.

    Technically, the programmes are licenced for the UK only.

    Channel five is "soft encrypted." That means that, if you have a videocrypt decoder, you can view this channel without a card.

    A subscription to the Channel Four film channel is available for a few pounds a month or you can go for one of the Sky packages. However, you should note the following:

    You will not be sold a card for one of these services unless you have a UK address at which you can do the business. Many people of course use an address at home in the UK and use that to subscribe and then view the programmes in Germany. As I said, this is illegal and if Sky spot what you are doing, they will turn your card off.

    Furthermore, Sky want to withdraw their analogue services in the near future.

    The main alternative is Hotbird which carries a number of English channels in the clear.

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