Virgin Media, a broadcaster based in the UK had announced the discontinuation of the feed by April 30, 2025. But this is not the first time the channel was taken off a platform as several affiliates in the US had reportedly removed the channel from the lineup.
Interesting to note, NHK World-Japan unlike BBC News and CNN doesn't have a localised feed for its offering within the regions it resides. It's likely more countries could join the lineup as the Japanese based news channel might be undergoing a potential restructure/streamlining.
My guess is NHK World-Japan is restricting its linear footprint to only Japan (or Asia) as seen with PBS KIDS when it halted it's operations in Australia and Africa. They'll continue to maintain its online presence with PBS KIDS and NHK World-Japan that offer YouTube channels.
Sky News which serves as a rival broadcaster has also emphasized an online first future which incorporates AI and reduces jobs so we might be seeing a lot more of this in future.
MultiChoice which serves as another one of its affiliates might be losing another TV channel later in the year as it continues bleeding DStv consumers and battling tough economic conditions. NHK World-Japan started out as online only service through DStv Stream before getting a linear network.
