NPO, the umbrella organisation of the Dutch public broadcasters, will reduce the number of thematic digital channels from 12 to eight during 2012.
Starting on April 1, the channels Consumenten24 (consumer affairs) and Geschiedenis24 (history) will cease broadcasting.
At the end of August, Spirit24 (religious programming) and Sterren.nl (Dutch music clips) will terminate their digital distribution.
At the moment, most of the 12 digital public channels are distributed via most digital platforms in the country.
Some of the programming of the disappearing channels will be transferred to the remaining channels.