Eutelsat Communications, in a consortium assembling Magyar Telekom and eVision, has been selected by Hungary's national public broadcaster, Magyar Televizio (MTV), to broadcast its Magyar TV2 channel across Europe using the EUROBIRD 9A satellite. The flagship general entertainment channel is now available on a free-to-air basis in both Standard Digital and High-Definition versions.

The multi-year contract was signed by Hungary's national public broadcaster following an open public procurement procedure, with official broadcasts launched on 21 September.

Within the framework of the consortium servicing MTV's requirements, Magyar Telekom manages terrestrial activities, including fibre delivery of the broadcast signals to eVision's teleport in Budapest.

The signals are multiplexed and uplinked by e-Vision to one transponder on Eutelsat's EUROBIRD 9A satellite for reception by satellite homes and terrestrial operators in Hungary and across Europe.

The arrival of Magyar TV2 on EUROBIRD 9A adds a new boost to the Hungarian and HD content available from Eutelsat's 9 degrees East neighbourhood, where the number of channels has almost doubled over the last 12 months to 245. Magyar TV2 notably joins Hungary's Hello HD, Europe's first all HD platform, which launched from EUROBIRD 9A in 2008.

Within an overall dynamic of HD take-up, which saw Eutelsat this month break the barrier of 100 HD channels, EUROBIRD 9A, with 28 channels, is the Group's second-largest neighbourhood for HD content.