Television in the Czech Republic
Television was introduced in Czechoslovakia in 1953. Experimental projects with DVB-T started in 2000. Finally on 21 October 2005, multiplex A (DVB-T) was launched with three channels of Česká televize and one of TV Nova and radio channels of Český rozhlas.
On April 12, 2006, six digital terrestrial television licenses were awarded to commercial broadcasters. The receivers of the licenses were: Z1, TV Pohoda, Regionální televizni agentura (RTA), Febio TV, TV Barrandov and Óčko. However, because of delays some projects lost investors and will not start (e.g. Fabio, Pohoda) or were cancelled. Z1 provided a news service in from 2008 to January 2011, when it ceased broadcasting. Óčko delivers a music service. TV Barrandov provides general programming services.
Czech Republic become the first country in central and eastern Europe to start to end all analogue broadcasts in November 2011.[1] The process completed when the last analogue transmitters in south-east Moravia and northern Moravia-Silesia were shut down on June 30, 2012.
Milestone of digitalization
In September 2008, when multiplex A was available in Prague, Central Bohemian Region, in surrounding areas of Brno, Ostrava, Domažlice and Ústí nad Labem, leave this multiplex with their 4 channels Česká televize. All channels of Česká televize (ČT1, ČT2, ČT24 and ČT4) is now in multiplex 1 (with can be seen in Bohemia (except few exceptions), in surrounding areas of Brno and in Ostrava). Multiplex A transform to multiplex 2 with stations TV Prima, Prima Cool / TV R1, TV Barrandov, TV Nova and Nova Cinema. The cover is very similar as multiplex 1, except southeast part of Bohemie. Multiplex B transform to multiplex 3. Now there are broadcasting "Public TV" (its commercial station), Z1 and until 31 July 2009 Óčko. In Prague there is broadcasting multiplex 3 on two frequency. On one of this frequency you can see also Noe TV and Prima HDTV. Multiplex 3 covered just Prague, Brno, Ostrava, Plzeň and Ústí nad Labem. This multiplex now had problem to find reliable stations to broadcast. There is also multiplex 4 which is operated by O2, but there is broadcast only ČT1 HD and Nova HDTV and covered is just center of Prague, center of Plzeň, center of Ostrava and center of Brno.
Czech TV crisis
The "Czech TV crisis" occurred at the end of 2000 and lasted until early 2001 as a battle for control of ČT, which included jamming and accusations of censorship. During the Czech TV crisis, ČT reporters organized an industrial dispute by staging a sit-in and occupying the news studio, and rejected attempts by Jana Bobošíková, the newly appointed head of the news department, to fire them. They were supported in their protest by politicians such as the then President Václav Havel and by Czech celebrities, but every time they tried to air their news broadcasts, Jana Bobošíková and Jiří Hodač would jam the transmission either with a "technical fault" screen reading: "An unauthorized signal has entered this transmitter. Broadcasting will resume in a few minutes," or with their own news broadcasts featuring Bobošíková and a team she had hired to "replace" the staff members she had sought to terminate. The Czech TV crisis eventually ended in early 2001, following the departure from ČT of Hodač and Bobošíková, under pressure by the street demonstration participants and at the request of the Czech Parliament, which had held an emergency session due to the crisis.
Most-viewed channels
The ATO measures television ratings in the Czech Republic. The channels with most share according to ATO's measurements were:[2]
Channel | Whole-day share, 15+ (April 2010) | Whole-day share, 15+ (March 2011) | Whole-day share, 15+ (May 2014) |
---|---|---|---|
TV Nova | 31.08% | 31.24% | 23.36% |
TV Prima | 16.92% | 17.16% | 14.26% |
ČT1 | 17.53% | 15.91% | 14.27% |
TV Barrandov | 5.38% | 4.83% | 4.88% |
ČT24 | 3.87% | 4.60% | 4.09% |
Nova Cinema | 3.90% | 4.19% | 3.8% |
ČT4 | 2.00% | 4.11% | 7.6% |
Prima Cool | 2.95% | 3.74% | 3.1% |
ČT2 | 3.63% | 2.78% | 3.95% |
Prima love | - | - | 2.19% |
Nova Action | - | - | 1.44% |
Nova 2 | - | - | 1.2% |
Nova Gold | - | - | 1.18% |
Prima ZOOM | - | - | 1.92% |
List of channels
Terrestrial free-to-air channels (DVB-T2)
- Česká televize - public service broadcaster
- Nova Group (CME Media)
- TV Nova (HD)
- Nova Cinema (HD)
- Nova Sport 1 (HD) - pay TV
- Nova Sport 2 (HD) - pay TV
- Nova Action (HD)
- Nova 2 (HD)
- Nova Gold (HD)
- Prima Group (FTV Prima Group)
- TV Prima (HD)
- Prima Cool (HD)
- Prima Love (HD)
- Prima Zoom (HD)
- Prima Max (HD)
- Prima Krimi (HD)
- Prima Comedy Central (Viacom, FTV Prima Group) (HD)
- CNN prima news
- Prima +1 - timeshift channel
- TV Barrandov
- TV Barrandov (HD) main channel
- Kino Barrandov (HD) movie channel
- Barrandov Plus (HD) kids & documentary programs
- Barrandov Family Czech and Slovak shows and music
- JOJ Czech (J&T Group)
- JOJ Family (HD)
- JOJ Cinema (HD)
- CS Mystery (former Kinosvět)
- BTV (Brno TV)
- Polar
- TV NOE -
- Óčko - music channel
- Óčko Gold - retro music channel
- Óčko Expres
- Óčko Black
- Ocko STAR
- Šlágr TV
- TV Rebel
- TV Relax (former TV Pohoda)
- Mňam TV
- Mňau TV
- Naživo
- Seznam.cz TV
- NASA TV (UHD)
- GALERIE
- SPORT 5
- ABC TV
- Televize pres antenu
- Retro Music TV
- JTV
Film
- HBO (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- HBO HD
- HBO 2
- HBO 2 HD
- HBO 3 (former HBO Comedy)
- HBO 3 HD (former HBO Comedy)
- Cinemax
- Cinemax HD
- Cinemax 2
- Cinemax 2 HD
- AMC (former MGM Channel)
- TCM (English audio only)
- Film Europe
- Film Europe HD
- Film+ (HD)
- FilmBox
- FilmBox Plus
- FilmBox Premium (HD)
- FilmBox Family
- FilmBox Extra HD
- CS Film
- Horor Film
Entertainment
- AXN HD
- AXN (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- AXN (version for Romania - only Digi CZ and Digi Slovakia)
- AXN Black
- AXN White
- Comedy Central Extra (Czech subtitles)
- Fashionbox HD
- Fashion TV (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Fine Living Network
- E!
- Spike (coming soon)
- SyFy (coming soon)
Documentary
- Animal Planet HD
- Animal Planet
- CBS Reality (former Zone Reality)
- Discovery HD Showcase
- Discovery Channel Europe
- Discovery Turbo Xtra
- Discovery Science
- Discovery Travel & Living (TLC)
- Investigation Discovery
- Docubox HD (English audio only)
- National Geographic Channel HD
- National Geographic Channel (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Nat Geo Wild HD
- Nat Geo Wild
- History Channel HD
- H2 HD (English audio only)
- History Channel
- Crime and Investigation Network
- Spektrum HD
- Spektrum (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Spektrum Home (former TV Deko)
- Travel Channel HD
- Travel Channel
- Food Network (English audio only)
- TV Paprika
- Fishing & Hunting TV
- Viasat History HD
- Viasat History
- Viasat Explorer
- Viasat Nature HD
- Viasat Nature
- HD+ (HD and 3D TV channel)
- HD+ (in SD)
Sport
- Eurosport HD
- Eurosport
- Eurosport 2 HD
- Eurosport 2
- Extreme Sports Channel (Czech subtitles)
- Fightbox HD (English audio only)
- Sport 1
- Sport 1 HD
- Sport 2
- Sport 2 HD
- Sport 5
- Arena Sport 1 (HD)
- Arena Sport 2
- Auto Motor Sport HD
- Motors TV (English, German, French audio only)
- Golf Channel HD
- Golf Channel (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
Kids and teens
- Disney Channel Czecho-Slovakia (former Jetix) (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Disney Junior Czecho-Slovakia (English audio only)
- Cartoon Network CZ
- Boomerang (Czech Republic) (replaced by Boomerang (Central and Eastern Europe) on 19 June 2017)
- Nickelodeon (version for Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Nick Jr.
- Jim Jam
- Minimax
- Megamax
- Duck TV HD
- Ducktv
- Baby TV
- CS mini
Music
- MTV Europe (Czech localization)
- MTV Live HD
- MTV Music (UK version)
- MTV Rocks (UK version)
- MTV Dance (UK version)
- MTV Hits (UK version)
- MTV Base (UK Version)
- VH-1 (European)
- VH-1 Classic (European)
- Musiq 1
- Music Box
- Retro Music Television (FTA in regional DVB-T)
- FUN 1
- C Music (French version)
- Mezzo HD (coming soon)
- Mezzo (French version)
- 360 TuneBox HD
Erotica
- Leo TV
- Extasy TV (coming soon)
- Hustler Blue
- Hustler TV
- Hustler HD 3D (coming soon)
- Playboy TV
- Playboy TV HD (coming soon)
- Penthouse HD
- Brazzers TV Europe (former Private Spice)
- Brazzers TV Europe HD (coming soon)
- Dorcel TV
- Private TV (former Daring TV! (former XXX X-Treme))
- EroX HD
- EroXXX HD
- Man-X
- The Adult Channel (UK version)
See also
- List of television stations
References
- "Czech Republic first in CEE to complete switchover". Retrieved January 31, 2014.
- "Měsíční zpráva o sledovanosti televize, prosinec 2010" (Web presentation) (in Czech). ATO. December 2010. Slide 8. Retrieved 28 January 2011.