ATV, the largest commercial broadcaster in Austria, will stop transmitting it standard definition signal via satellite by the end of the year, its parent company announced last week.
Officials at private media venture ProSieben Sat.1 said the move was intended to help streamline the channel’s distribution on satellite and cable systems in the country and neighboring regions where ATV is offered.
Executives say the majority of viewers who tune in to ATV’s programming mostly watch the network’s high definition (HD) feed, which has been offered via broadcast, cable and satellite since 2013. Comcast’s Sky Deutschland and the streaming service Joyn are among the various options that Austrians have to access the HD channel.
ATV offers a robust slate of general entertainment, news and sports programming, including American imports like “NCIS,” “Bones,” “Nancy Drew,” “9JKL” and “The Mentalist.”
