Over the last decade, the popularity of international European shows has skyrocketed. But, how did this begin? And, what technology has supported such growth? Let’s take a look.
In the Beginning, There Was One

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What first began as a technical broadcasting experiment has become a mainstay of European TV – Eurovision. Today, Eurovision’s greatest export, the Eurovision Song Contest, is watched by millions worldwide every year. The contest is so popular that many platforms provide audiences with Eurovision odds which allow people to interact with the programme. Whether you end up betting UK or for another country, this further fosters the sense of competition between the countries as they all look to have the biggest hit song in Europe.
In the beginning, however, the idea for the Eurovision network went beyond the singing competition. The network, launched in 1954, was designed to create regular common TV programmes which could be watched throughout Europe. The first programmes were broadcast by the network across Belgium, UK, German, Denmake, France, Italy, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, using experimental TV broadcast technology credited to Italian national broadcasters. Following the success of the first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956, this highlighted the untapped demand for accessible European content.
Since then, technology has only continued to improve, allowing for more and more European TV to be consumed by an international audience. Some of the greatest developments making such TV accessible are streaming and translation services.
International Streaming

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It goes without saying that streaming services have transformed the entertainment industry. These services can be accessed all over the world, with each country having its own database of international shows to check out. Due to this, streaming services have an international audience. Netflix, for example, has over 14 million British subscribers, 13 million in Germany, and 10 million in France, highlighting a demand for content that can be enjoyed by different European audiences.
As many European countries boast multicultural societies, there has been a rise in international content on the platforms. In other words, British Netflix isn’t just limited to British favourites like Gavin & Stacey, you can also find German shows like The Empress, Spanish shows like La Casa de Papel (Money Heist), Nordic Noir like The Bridge, French detective shows like Lupin, and Italian period dramas like Medici.
Eliminating Language Barriers
Of course, it is all well and good for streaming services to provide access to shows from other European countries, but, at the end of the day, we need to be able to understand them. For this reason, you’ll find that many shows on these streaming services can be dubbed or subtitled in a wide range of different languages, making them accessible for all no matter where you reside.
Due to this uptake in demand for translation, the sector has seen a huge transformation in available technologies. What before needed to be done by a native speaker by hand is now seeing a digital makeover. State of the art AI technology is being developed that can translate, dub, and subtitle content in real time. This could have a profound effect on the range of content and the available languages that could be available in the future.
From Eurovision to modern streaming services, European TV shows have consistently grown in popularity. Thanks to technological developments in broadcasting and translation alike, audiences can now access a wider range of European content than ever before.