Television Channels of Nepal: Licensed Channel Directory

Nepal's television sector has expanded from a single state-run channel in the mid-1980s to a crowded field of well over a hundred licensed services. As of 2017, the government had issued broadcasting licences to 117 television channels, of which 71 were cable-only channels, four were digital-terrestrial, and three were distributed over Direct-to-Home (DTH) satellite platforms; about 42 of the licensed channels were based in the Kathmandu Valley. The remainder mix terrestrial, satellite and free-to-air distribution, and the total has continued to rise as new specialist and high-definition channels launch.

All broadcasting in Nepal is licensed under the National Broadcasting Act 2049 (1993 AD) and the National Broadcasting Regulation 2052 (1995 AD). The licensing and regulatory authority is the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MoCIT), with the Department of Information and Broadcasting (DoIB) evaluating applications, carrying out technical assessment and monitoring compliance. Licences are issued for distinct categories: terrestrial, satellite, cable, DTH and digital-terrestrial.

This page is a dated, licence-based directory of Nepal's main television channels, giving each channel's launch year, distribution type, operating media house and broadcast language. It also traces the milestones that shaped the sector: the state monopoly under Nepal Television, the arrival of the first satellite channel, the 2003 private-broadcasting boom, and the shift toward HD, 4K and digital-terrestrial transmission.

Television arrived in Nepal with Nepal Television (NTV), the state broadcaster, which began transmission in 1985 (2041 BS) after test broadcasts on 17 Magh 2041 BS (30 January 1985). In February 1986 NTV became a full-fledged corporation under communications legislation of the then His Majesty's Government, and it remains owned and operated by the Government of Nepal through the ministry responsible for information and broadcasting. For roughly the next 15 years, NTV was the country's only domestic television service.

Today Nepal Television runs a family of channels rather than a single service. These include the flagship Nepal Television (NTV) for general entertainment and news, NTV Plus for entertainment, sports and educational content, a dedicated NTV News channel, the international NTV World, and regional stations such as NTV Kohalpur (serving Lumbini, Karnali and Sudurpaschim provinces) and NTV Itahari (serving Koshi and Madhesh provinces). Programming is carried in Nepali and English, with regional-language slots.

As the public broadcaster with the widest terrestrial reach, NTV historically commanded the largest audience share; a 2017 viewership survey placed it around 38 percent, ahead of all private rivals. Its terrestrial, satellite and online distribution give it near-national coverage, which is why it remains the reference point for any list of Nepal Television channels.

Channel Nepal is widely credited as the country's first satellite television channel, breaking the terrestrial-only model that NTV had defined. It was owned by media entrepreneur Jamim Shah and carried entertainment, information and current-affairs programming in Nepali, distributed by satellite so that it could reach Nepali audiences beyond the range of terrestrial transmitters, including the diaspora.

The channel became nationally infamous in December 2000, when it broadcast a false report attributing anti-Nepal remarks to the Indian actor Hrithik Roshan. The report triggered riots in which four people died and about 180 were injured, and the channel was briefly banned. The episode is a fixture in accounts of Nepali media history and confirms that Channel Nepal was already on air by 2000.

Jamim Shah was shot dead in Kathmandu in 2010, and Channel Nepal's prominence faded as a wave of better-resourced private channels emerged. Its historical significance, however, is as the pioneer that proved satellite distribution was viable for a Nepali channel.

The decisive break with the state monopoly came in 2003, when Nepal's first private terrestrial channels went on air. Kantipur Television (KTV) launched in July 2003 as part of the Kantipur Media Group, the country's largest private media house, and quickly became the leading private broadcaster. Image Channel, run by the Image Group of Companies, also began broadcasting in 2003, carrying programming in Nepali and Maithili. Between them they established the template for commercial Nepali television.

A steady stream of private channels followed. Avenues Television, a satellite free-to-air news channel, started in 2007. AP1 HD, launched on 31 March 2017 under the Annapurna/Guna Group, became Nepal's first high-definition channel and gained a mass audience through the Nepal Idol franchise. Other well-known entrants include ABC Television, Himalaya Television, News24, Mountain Television, Nepal1, Prime Times and Galaxy 4K, alongside 4K pioneers that appeared from 2022.

By 2017, private channels had captured most of the market that NTV once held alone. The same viewership survey put Kantipur TV around 27 percent and Avenues around 8 percent, with the long tail of remaining audience spread across dozens of smaller channels. The survey also reported that about 72 percent of Nepali households owned a television set and nearly 60 percent of people watched television every day.

Nepal issues broadcasting licences by distribution technology, and the same media house may hold more than one licence type for a single brand. Understanding the categories explains why the licensed total is far larger than the number of channels most viewers can name: many licences are held by small cable operators and multi-system operators (MSOs) rather than by nationally known channels.

The licensing framework flows from the National Broadcasting Act 2049 (1993) and the National Broadcasting Regulation 2052 (1995), with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology as the issuing authority and the Department of Information and Broadcasting handling assessment. Digital-terrestrial (DVB-T2), DTH and MMDS wireless services have been layered on top of the original terrestrial and cable regime as Nepal has modernised its distribution networks.

The main licence categories used in Nepal are set out below, with the 2017 counts where they are known.

The list below summarises Nepal's best-known television channels with their launch year, distribution type, operating media house and main language. Launch years and types are drawn from published channel histories and media directories; where a year is disputed or approximate it is marked as such. Because licences and ownership change, treat this as a reference snapshot rather than a live registry.

For fuller corporate context, several of these channels belong to diversified media groups that also run newspapers, radio stations and news portals, so cross-referencing the media house alongside the channel gives a clearer picture of Nepal's television ownership.

News is one of the most competitive segments of Nepali television, and several channels built their brands on rolling coverage and current affairs. The leading Nepali news channels include NTV News (state), Kantipur Television (Kantipur Media Group), Avenues Television, News24, ABC Television, Himalaya Television and AP1, most of which are distributed by satellite so their bulletins reach viewers nationwide and abroad.

Many channels sit inside larger media conglomerates that also publish newspapers and run radio and online outlets. Kantipur Television is part of the Kantipur Media Group, publisher of the Kantipur and The Kathmandu Post dailies; Image Channel belongs to the Image Group; and AP1 HD is associated with the Annapurna/Guna Group, which also runs Annapurna Post. This concentration means television, print and digital coverage in Nepal are often produced under a shared newsroom umbrella.

Because ownership, branding and licence status change over time, readers checking a specific channel should confirm current details against the Department of Information and Broadcasting and the channel's own media house. This directory is designed to give an accurate, dated starting point rather than a substitute for the official licence register.