Today, the Southeast Lithuania will get access to five uncoded Polish TV channels that have been officially launched via Lithuanian digital terrestrial television networks, i.e. TVP Polonia, TVP Info, TVP Historia, NUTA.TV and Power.
New Polish channels will be accessible in Vilnius, Vilnius, Švenčionys and Šalčininkai districts, including some parts of Ignalina, Anykščiai, Molėtai, Ukmergė, Jonava, Širvintos, Vievis, Kaišiadorys, Elektrėnai, Trakai, Varėna and Alytus district municipalities (see the attached map).
This retransmission project was commissioned by the Ministry of Transport and Communications and will be executed by the Lithuanian Radio and Television Centre (Telecentras).
According to Saulius Skvernelis, Prime Minister of Lithuania, who participated in the official launching ceremony of the Polish TV channels on Wednesday at the Transmission Hall of Vilnius Television Tower, the Government has focused from the very beginning on regional policy, the reduction of social, economic and information exclusion, therefore it is not accidental that his, as Prime Minister’s, first visit was made to Šalčininkai district in January 2017. Thus, the retransmission of Polish channels is Government’s continued delivery on the obligations.
“Speaking to the people of this area, I once again realized that the Government needs to take concrete steps to give local people access to a wider variety of information sources. We have raised funds in the budget over less than a year (this is a record-breaking period) and authorized the Lithuanian Radio and Television Centre to negotiate the retransmission of Polish TV channels in Southeast Lithuania. Today, we have the result. This is not an alternative to the Lithuanian TV channels but the means to ensure the public need for greater awareness”, said the Prime Minister.
The Head of Government also announced that thanks to the efforts of the Lithuanian Radio and Television Centre and the management of the LRT, the capacity of the transmitters in Lazdijai would be increased. This will strengthen the signal of the national LRT broadcaster’s programmes in the region, as well as in densely populated areas by Lithuanians in Poland, for example, in Seinai.
Polish Ambassador to Lithuania Urszula Doroszewska also emphasized the importance of retransmission.
“I am very pleased to take part in the ceremony of launching the five Polish TV channels in the territory of Lithuania. This is a very important event and a clear statement that, thanks to the clever cooperation between Poland and Lithuania, we can effectively implement projects that are very important to our bilateral relations”, said U. Doroszewska.
According to Telecentras’ Director Remigijus Šerys, the people of Southeast Lithuania, who want to add the five Polish channels to the free terrestrial digital programme package should first turn on automatic TV channel search on their TVs. New Polish channels are broadcast from the Tower of Vilnius, as well as from the towers at Mikantoniai village (near Šalčininkai) and Švenčionys, therefore, the correct field antenna orientation in one of these towers will help to receive a better TV signal. Also, residents can get help and advice on Telecentras’ free line: 8 (5) 200 15 15.
The Polish broadcasters – Telewizja Polska and Michał Winicki Entertainment – briefly described the content of the retransmission programmes launched in Southeast Lithuania:
- TVP INFO – an information news channel introducing viewers to the latest developments in politics, economics, culture, sport, news, and current events in Poland and in the world.
- TVP POLONIA – an entertainment and information channel dedicated to Polish and European communities in Europe and the world, with television series, biographical/historical documentation, films, concerts, theatre performances and news about the events taking place in Poland.
- TVP HISTORIA – the most popular historical channel and the second most popular TV channel in Poland, broadcasting films and documentaries on various periods of history of Poland, Europe and the world – from ancient history to modern history, as well as a natural documentary, introducing the viewer to the changes that have taken place in nature.
- NUTA.TV – a music entertainment channel, dominated by the most popular contemporary and musical compositions of the last decade.
- POWER TV – a music entertainment channel, broadcasting the most popular musical pieces of the 80’s and 90’s. About 50 % in the channel grid time is devoted to Polish music.
About EUR 349 000 a year will go to the retransmission of Polish television programmes in Lithuania. The agreement with the retransmission provider is concluded for one year, with a possibility of extending this contract two more times for one year. The list of channels is not final; there is a possibility to expand it.
