How to Download New Hot Bird Satellite Channels

By John Lister

Three main Hot Bird satellites serve Europe and surrounding areas.
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Hot Bird is the former name (still commonly used) of a range of satellites that broadcast digital television and radio. The broadcasts can be received across Europe and parts of North Africa and the Middle East. Around 120 million homes receive channels from the Hot Bird satellites, which carry more than 600 subscription channels and nearly 500 free-to-air channels, with frequent new additions. Though precise instructions vary, the general process for adding new channels is the same on most satellite receivers.

Step 1

Confirm that your dish size is adequate for the particular Hot Bird satellite you want to obtain a signal from. While it varies slightly from satellite to satellite, as a rough rule a 70cm dish will be adequate across Europe, but you'll need a larger dish the further away from Europe you are.

Step 2

Click the "Menu" button on your remote, then select the option for installation. This could also be listed under terms such as "add new channels" or "rescan."

Step 3

Confirm you are scanning the Hot Bird satellites. If your system lists specific satellites, you are looking for Eutelsat Hot Bird 13B, 13C or 13D. If your system only lists locations, you are looking for 13-degrees East. If this isn't available, or you don't receive a strong signal, try nine-degrees East.

Step 4

Follow the on-screen instructions to start the scan. Note that this may take some time. When the scan is finished, you may need to select an option to confirm the new channel list.

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