Japanese TV content

It is true that youtube hosts more than enough Japanese-spoken material. But still I would like to watch Japanese TV channels. However, only NHK premium seems to be available in Europe and it is very costly to receive through satellite (through JSTV). So I've been doing a little digging to find some TV content from Japan.

So far, I've found this site, where you can see links to channels with pre-recorded or live content. Some of the links work better if you just steal the url and open in a new browser. Some, unfortunately, don't work.

Some of the content can be viewed directly on the same site, and some will direct you to the respective website. When I'm directed to an everything-in-japanese page, more often than not I'm lost. Then, the Google translate button comes in very handy (simply drag the language of your choice and drop it onto your bookmark toolbar) . Also a Windows Media Player plug-in will be necessary if you use Firefox like I do.

I have this idea that if I listen to various content diligently, I will crack it one day.

Here are some links that work reliably:

• ChannelJ for travel and culture and amazing traditional crafts/industry content. (Here you can find the same content dubbed in English. It may be useful to watch again in English to see how much of it you were able to catch)
  
• FNN News From The Fuji News Network (fast connection)
  
• Odoroku TV and Seebit TV are particularly good for watching some young people chatting away all the time.
• Sony Music , If you're into J-pop.
• Shop Channel is one of my favourites. It doesn't require much from you to follow and consists of a lot of repetition within the theme.

I will continue updating this post for further links as I find them. I hope this helps in our quest to find entertaining ways to get better at Japanese. New tips are, of course, always welcome!