Living in Dubai

Television

There are a number of free television channels, but non-Arabic language channels are limited. Most expats opt for paid TV from one of the satellite services such as Orbit Showtime Network (OSN), but if you don’t fancy a satellite dish or your rental terms don’t allow one, then Etisalat and du offer digital TV. Digital TV providers can also provide your broadband and landline phone services, with bundles offering various levels of broadband speed, call time and channel choice. It can get expensive for the best of each.

High Definition (HD) channels are now commonplace and there are plenty of the ‘on demand’ options available that many expats are used to. For example, OSN customers can purchase a Showbox (a recordable digital receiver) that allows them to pause live television and record favourite shows and they can also watch movies and series online through OSN Play, which is free to subscribers. Digital TV subscribers also get the benefits of recording and pausing live television. Etisalat is launching its eLife TV iPad App to let subscribers watch on their tablet via wi-fi or Etisalat’s super-fast mobile internet.

FOOTBALL FANS
If you’re after English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, French Ligue 1, Italian Serie A or the UEFA Champion’s League then you’ll need to subscribe to Al Jazeera Sports package with access to channels +1 to +10. If you’re an existing Etisalat or du subscriber you can do this through them for Dhs.58 or Dhs.70 respectively.
 
FREE TO VIEW
Local free-to-air English language channels in Dubai include:
Dubai One: 24 hour entertainment specialising in various US series
MBC 4: primarily US series targeted at women
MBC Action: US action series, targeted at men
MBC Max: latest Hollywood films
MBC 2: mainly Western movies
City 7 TV: independent Dubai-based broadcaster. News, business, lifestyle, drama and comedy shows
 

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