42 What Satellite & Digital TV April 2011

Media journalist Marta Perchuć-Burzyńska

Hard talk on The Third Point Of View

Popular host and film critic Michał Chaciński

Treasures from the archives of Polish TV

Each month Wotsat highlight Europe’s best free TV channels

TVP Kultura was the first thematic channel to be run by the Polish

public broadcaster TVP, and has taken root in the cultural life of Poland for good.

The channel’s programmes focus on various disciplines of the arts, such as cinema, theatre, music, presenting a wide range of these fields of art. It co-operates with artists, both the most popular ones and the niche ones, and constantly co-operates with the most important cultural institutions in Poland.

Krzysztof Koehler, head of the channel, said: ’We assume that the role of modern television with a cultural profile is not only to report events. We think that a modern cultural TV channel cannot limit itself to the role of a broadcaster and commentator.

’TVP Kultura wishes to co-create modern art, to initiate and inspire new phenomena, to meet artists halfway, offering them new tools and forms of communication.’

The Active Studio project made TVP Kultura for the first time a creator and originator of material, as well as an integral part of an artefact. Each premiere of Television Theatre is watched by twice as

many people as the combined audiences attending all live dramatic theatre performances in Poland.

TVP Kultura offers its viewers the most renowned feature and documentary films of recent years, as well as masterpieces of the world’s artistic cinema, including films that have never been shown by other TV stations in Poland.

The channel presents contemporary and niche arts, various trends in the arts, music, literature and the cinema, including the most interesting phenomena, creators, and bands. Its presenters include prominent Polish artists, critics and philosophers, and it is also engaged in campaigns such as The Republic of Books, to encourage reading and usage of public libraries, and a competition with the National Cultural Centre to find the best internet video to represent its social campaign slogan, ’Culture Counts’.

Flagship shows The top programmes on TVP Kultura

Trzeci punkt widzeniaDiscussionPhilosophers Marek A Cichocki, Dariusz Gawin and Dariusz Karlowicz comment on the politics and morals of cultural events in The Third Point of View.

Tygodnik KulturalnyNewsCultural Weekly is a summary of the most interesting cultural and art activities, where Poland's most outstanding critics discuss selected cultural events.

Skarby filmotekiFilmIn Treasures of the Film Archive, Prof Marek Hendrykowski shows the most interesting, fascinating and meaningful films from the National Fim Archive.

Weekend Film MagazineCinemaWeekendowy Magazyn Filmowy is a weekly roundup of the latest news from the Polish film industry.

Po trochu wyciagane z lochu czyli ArchiwizjaClassic TVValuable and often unknown shows from the past about the history of the Polish rock and pop music, unearthed from the Polish Television Archive.

ToolkitWhat you need to receive TVP Kulturan A free-to-air DVB digital satellite receiver with a 50cm dish aimed at any of the above satellites

Channel factfilen Name: TVP Kulturan Country: Polandn Hot Bird TV Awards category: Culture/educationn Final result: Runner-upn Language: Polishn Launch date: April 24, 2005

n Satellites: Hot Bird, 13°E and Astra 1, 19.2°En Frequency: 11.488GHz (13°E), 10.862GHz (19.2°E)n Polarity: Horizontal (13°E & 19.2°E)n FEC: 27500 (13°E), 22000 (19.2°E)n Symbol rate: 5/6 (13°E), 7/8 (19.2°E)n Website: www.tvp.pl/kultura

TVP KulturaWWW.HoTBirDTVAWArDS.Com

Max Cegielski presents Korzenie or 'Roots'

April 2011 What Satellite & Digital TV 43

euro sPoTlighT

Footprint

19.2°EThe Astra 1 position is now into its third generation of satellites, from Astra 1A with just four transponders to the mighty five-tonne Astra 1M, with nine times as many transponders covering a wider european footprint with even greater power. The four satellites at this location deliver almost 1,200 channels to more than 95million homes in 35 countries, with complete on-orbit back-up. There are also two active Ka-band transponders for broadband via satellite, but frequency re-use with multiple spot beams means these can reach far more customers than Ku-band broadband.

n operator: ses-Astra

Satellitesn Astra 1h Launched: Proton D1-e, Baikonur, June 18, 1999 Launch mass: 3,700kg Manufacturer: Hughes BSS-601HP Transponders: 28 Ku-band, 2 Ka-band EIRP: 51dBW Beams: Europe, 8 steerable Ka spots

n Astra 1Kr Launched: Atlas V, Cape Canaveral, April 20, 2006 Launch mass:4,331kg Manufacturer: Lockheed Martin A2100AXS Transponders: 32 Ku-band EIRP: 51dBW Beams: Europe

n Astra 1l Launched: Ariane V, Kourou, May 4, 2007 Launch mass: 4,500kg Manufacturer: Lockheed Martin A2100AXS Transponders: 29 Ku-band, 2 Ka-band EIRP: 46-54.5dBW [beams] Europe, 8 steerable Ka spots

n Astra 1M Launched: Proton Breeze M, Baikonur, November 6, 2008 Launch mass: 5,320kg Manufacturer: EADS Astrium Eurostar-3000 Transponders: 36 Ku-band EIRP: 53dBW Beams: European, Widebeam

The hot Bird TV Awards

More footprints at www.ses-astra.com

The Hot Bird TV Awards shine a spotlight on the thematic channels that enrich and diversify the broadcasting experience for many millions of viewers.

Hundreds of channels from around the world enter this annual competition, judged by an independent panel of media experts and recognised at a gala ceremony in Venice. Eutelsat, Europe’s leading satellite operator, created this event in 1998. It is now a joint initiative between Eutelsat, Eurovisioni and SAT Expo Europe, as a prestigious recognition

for channels broadcasting via its fleet. The Hot Bird satellites form Eutelsat’s

premium broadcasting position, receivable across Europe from 13°E.

In 2010, the record number of 150 channels from 21 countries entered the 11 categories: Children’s, cinema, culture/education, documentaries, fiction/general entertainment, HDTV, lifestyle, music, national window, news and sports. Viewers will be able to vote online for the People’s Choice Award 2011 when the nominees are announced this summer.

Krzysztof Koehler, head of TVP Kultura (left), with the Hot Bird TV Awards

runners-up trophy

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