science

HD+

HD+ is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand HD+ rather than just read about it. In short: HD+ is a premium high-definition (HD) satellite and streamed TV service for German users, owned by HD PLUS GmbH, a subsidiary of SES based in Unterföhring near Munich, Germany. HD+ carries HD and ultra-high-definition (UHD) channels outside the established pay-TV networks, broadcast encrypted from satellites at the Astra 19.2°E position direct to home satellite dishes.

Key takeaways

HD+ belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect HD+ to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of HD+ from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

HD+ is a premium high-definition (HD) satellite and streamed TV service for German users, owned by HD PLUS GmbH, a subsidiary of SES based in Unterföhring near Munich, Germany. HD+ carries HD and ultra-high-definition (UHD) channels outside the established pay-TV networks, broadcast encrypted from satellites at the Astra 19.2°E position direct to home satellite dishes. Reception and decryption is with a dedicated HD+ set-top box, an HD+ conditional-access module (CAM) and Smart Card in a receiver or TV set equipped with a CI+ slot, a Sky Deutschland pay-TV reception system, or certain integrated TV sets. HD+ reception systems also provide reception of free-to-air (unencrypted) HD channels from the same satellites. In December 2021 the HD+ IP service was launched, streaming HD+ channels to viewers' TV sets through a smart TV app without the need for a dish or set-top box (but without access to UHD TV channels). The HD PLUS GmbH company grew out of ASTRA Platform Services (later SES Platform Services, then MX1, now part of SES Video) and offers the technical management and the marketing of HD programmes for all broadcasters, including the distribution of the smart cards required for reception. In October 2014, HD+ joined the Free TV Alliance, alongside other free-to-view broadcasters Tivù Sat and Fransat, and free-to-air Freesat. As of December 2016, there were nearly 3 million households in Germany receiving the HD+ service.

HD+ channels

HD channels

UHD channels

History of HD+ channel line-up The HD+ service launched on November 1, 2009, with two channels, RTL HD and Vox HD. Sat.1 HD, ProSieben HD and kabel eins HD were added on January 31, 2010. Sport1 HD (previously DSF) joined the service on the first anniversary of the launch of HD+, on November 1, 2010, becoming the first channel in the HD+ package from outside the RTL and ProSiebenSat.1 groups. On December 1, 2010, HD versions of German women's entertainment channel sixx (owned by ProSiebenSat.1 Media) and entertainment channel RTL II launched in HD on HD+. In June 2011, Comedy Central and nickelodeon from MTV Networks joined the HD+ platform and it was announced that news channel, N24 would join HD+ from July, bringing the number of channels offered to 11. In October 2011 Tele5 HD launched on HD+ and on May 1, 2012, Super RTL launched a high definition version of the RTL/Disney owned channel on the HD+ platform alongside Discovery's DMAX channel. The 15th channel to join HD+ was adult pop music channel Deluxe Music, in December 2012. Disney Channel HD left the German pay-TV platform, Sky Deutschland in November 2013 to relaunch on HD+ on January 17, 2014, as an advertising-financed service. In April 2014 HD+ added the news channel n-tv HD, male orientated entertainment channels ProSieben Maxx HD and RTL Nitro HD, and women's lifestyle channel TLC HD to the line-up, bringing the total number of channels in the service to 20. In the months leading up to the launch of HD+, it had been reported that MTV – already broadcasting in HD from Astra 19.2°E – was in discussions to join the package but it was only some six years after those discussions, on September 1, 2014, that MTV HD left the Sky Deutschland pay-TV platform and became the 21st channel to join HD+. However, MTV HD was not available for customers that viewed HD+ via Sky Deutschland (as there was no VideoGuard encryption enabled for MTV HD) until 21 October 2015. In October, the number of channels was reduced back to 20 when Viacom reorganized its channels in Germany. Comedy Central was no longer available via HD+ and Nickelodeon, which previously shared its channel with Comedy Central, increased its broadcast hours to 24 hours a day. On January 1, 2015, the women's channel Sat.1 Gold started broadcasting in HD on the HD+ platform, the last of ProSiebenSat.1's SD channels to launch in HD In September 2015, HD+ started broadcasts of the ultra-high-definition television (UHD) demonstration channel, UHD1, showing sports, culture, lifestyle, and nature video clips and trailers. On October 4, 2016, INsight TV HD, an action and extreme sports channel from TV Entertainment Reality Network (TERN) became the 22nd HD+ channel and on December 1, 2016, Eurosport 1 HD started broadcasting on the HD+ platform. In August 2017 Eurosport announced that HD+ subscribers could add access to live sports coverage on the Eurosport 2 HD Xtra channel for an additional €5/month. In December 2017, Travelxp joined HD+, broadcasting in Ultra HD and HDR (the first travel channel worldwide to use HDR) but left the service in April 2020. RTL launched its own UHD channel on April 28, 2018, distributed exclusively via HD+. In March 2019 Comedy Central returned to HD+, replacing Nickelodeon. In August 2021, the ProSiebenSat.1 UHD channel was launched on HD+, broadcasting UHD content from channels, Sat.1, ProSieben, Kabel Eins, ProSieben Maxx and Kabel Eins Doku. In November 2021, RTLup HD (previously RTLplus) and VOXup HD were added to the platform, bringing the number of HD channels to 26. In November 2023, 13 HD channels from German media company High View were added to the HD+ offering at no extra cost to subscribers. The new Variety+ package comprises three entertainment channels (Crime Time HD, Serien+ HD and Red Adventure HD), five music channels (Deluxe Rock HD, Deluxe Flashback HD, Deluxe Dance by Kontor HD, Deluxe Rap HD and Deluxe Lounge HD), two lifestyle channels (Just Cooking HD, just.fishing HD), and three documentary channels (xplore HD, HipTrips HD and OneTerra HD).

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with HD+

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what HD+ claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to HD+ before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about HD+ ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of HD+

In research: HD+ appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses HD+ in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: HD+ is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Direct broadcast satellite services, German companies established in 2009, High-definition television, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for HD+ outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study HD+ in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what HD+ means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain HD+ out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is HD+ in simple terms?

Why does HD+ matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study HD+?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on HD+.

HD+