DW-TV

DW (TV) began as RIAS-TV, a television station launched by the West Berlin broadcaster RIAS (Radio in the American Sector / Rundfunk im Amerikanischen Sektor) in August 1988. The fall of the Berlin Wall the following year and German reunification in 1990 meant that RIAS-TV was to be closed down. On 1 April 1992, Deutsche Welle inherited the RIAS-TV broadcast facilities, using them to start a German- and English-language television channel broadcast via satellite, DW (TV), adding a short Spanish broadcast segment the following year. In 1995, it began 24-hour operation (12 hours German, 10 hours English, two hours Spanish). At that time, DW (TV) introduced a new news studio and a new logo.

In 2001, Deutsche Welle (in conjunction with ARD and ZDF) founded the German TV subscription TV channel for North American viewers. The project was shut down after four years due to low subscriber numbers. It has since been replaced by the DW-TV channel (also a subscription service).

Unlike most other international broadcasters, DW-TV doesn't charge terrestrial stations for use of its programming, and as a result its News Journal and other programmes are rebroadcast on numerous public broadcasting stations in several countries, including the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. In the Philippines, selected Anglophone programmes are shown nationwide on Net 25. In the U.S., some of its programs were distributed via the World Channel as well as MHz Worldview, although after the closure of MHz Worldview in 2020, a few stations have since offered a full carriage of DW-TV in select areas.

In March 2009, DW-TV expanded its television services in Asia with two new channels: DW-TV Asia and DW-TV Asia+. DW-TV Asia (DW-TV Asien in German) contains 16 hours of German programming and 8 hours in English while DW-TV Asia+ contains 18 hours of English programmes plus 6 hours of German programmes.[1]

In August 2009, DW-TV's carriage in the United Kingdom on Sky channel 794 ceased, although the channel continues to be available via other European satellites receivable in the UK.[2]

Deutsche Welle relaunched their television channels on 6 February 2012, using the abbreviation DW for all its services. Deutsche Welle also revamped the television schedules.[3]

Deutsche Welle changed its schedules again on 22 June 2015, with DW in Asia and Oceania and DW (Europe) merged to become a 24-hour English news channel, discontinued English programmes in DW (Arabia) and DW (Español).[4]

DW-TV is broadcast via the satellites AsiaSat 7, GSAT-15, Nilesat 102, Atlantic Bird 3, Hot Bird 13B, AMC-1 and Intelsat 9.

DW-TV is also available on the Internet and on Digital terrestrial television in small handful of cities in the United States.

All programme names given in this article are the ones currently used on DW English[7] and DW German[8] website.

As of 13 April 2018, DW (TV) operates five channels:

• DW (English): Broadcast in Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, North America (24 hours in English[21]).
• DW (Arabia): Broadcast in the Middle East, North Africa, and select countries in Europe (24 hours in Arabic[22]).
• DW (Español): Broadcast in Latin America (24 hours in Spanish).[21]
• DW (Deutsch+): Broadcast in The Americas (20 hours in German, 4 hours in English[23]).
• DW (Deutsch): Broadcast in Asia-Pacific (24 hours in German).[21]

The Channel DW (Arabia 2) stopped broadcasting on the Astra 1M satellite on 15 December 2017, but continues to broadcast on the Nilesat and Badr4 satellites, which reach both the Middle East and Euroepe.[24] [25] DW Arabic is aimed at Arabic speakers who had come to Europe as refugees, and residents of the Middle East.[26]

• Official website
• DW frequencies
• DW-TV live stream