Smithsonian Channel (UK)

Smithsonian Channel is a British free-to-air television channel that was launched as the UK version of the US documentary network Smithsonian Channel. It launched on 12 February 2019.

Smithsonian Channel
Launched12 February 2019
Owned by(ViacomCBS Networks UK & Australia/Smithsonian Institution)
Picture format1080i HDTV
(downscaled to 16:9 576i for the SDTV feed)
CountryUnited Kingdom and Ireland
LanguageEnglish
Broadcast areaUnited Kingdom and Ireland
Sister channel(s)Channel 5
5Star
5USA
5Select
Paramount Network
WebsiteSmithsonian Channel UK
Availability
Terrestrial
FreeviewChannel 57
Satellite
FreesatChannel 175 (HD)
SkyChannel 173 (SD/HD)
Channel 889 (SD)
Astra 2G
(28.2°E)		11.171 H 22000 5/6 (HD)
11.264 V 27500 2/3 (SD)
Cable
Virgin MediaChannel 276 (HD)

The content of the channel, much of which is drawn from the US station, comprises predominantly original non-fiction programming covering a range of historical, scientific and cultural subjects.

Carriage

Test transmissions for the new services began with the addition of HD and subsequently SD broadcast capacity on the Astra 2G satellite in late 2018. Broadcast of video tests began in HD in December 2018, with SD following shortly thereafter.

The channel was officially made available on 12 February 2019. Ahead of the launch, it had been suggested that the network would begin on satellite, then launch on Freeview in the spring: however, in practice the channel went live on all four of the UK's main TV platforms on the same date.

The free-to-air channel was also made available on Freesat. The Freesat broadcast uses an HD swap-out system similar to that used by Channel 5, S4C and TRT World.

Smithsonian Channel has also been made available on the Virgin Media cable platform. As Virgin no longer supplies SD receivers to its customers, only the HD version of the channel is available on cable.

Prior to the channel's launch it had been indicated that Smithsonian Channel would be made available to Freeview devices "in the spring"[1] In practice, though, capacity on the Arqiva-operated COM7 multiplex was secured to enable the channel to go live at the same time as on other platforms. Smithsonian eventually moved to provide increased coverage. Only the standard-definition version of Smithsonian broadcasts on a DVB-T multiplex alongside other SD channels, so most homes can receive the channel with their DVB-T receivers on channel number 57.

Advance weekly listings for the Smithsonian Channel were carried in Radio Times magazine from February 2019.

On January 7, 2020, Smithsonian Channel boosted its coverage by broadcasting on channel 57 from a different multiplex and therefore increasing coverage. However until ViacomCBS launches Paramount Network +1 onto Freeview, a simulcast of the Smithsonian Channel can still be found in some areas on channel 99.

See also

References
  1. [Profile of the channel in Total TV Guide (Bauer Media), issue date 9–15 February 2019, published 5 February 2019]
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