TOP STORY
- DirecTV Expands HD Battleground to VOD
DirecTV has expanded the battle for the best HD packages between cable and satellite to the on-demand realm with the nationwide launch of a VOD platform that has over 4,000 titles, including about 150 in HD. more » » »
NEWS
- GlobeCast Throws a Wider HD Net
To meet rising demand for high-definition capable facilities, GlobeCast America has been investing heavily in upgrading its U.S. infrastructure for transmission and playout of HD signals. As part of that process, it has improved its global fiber network and has nearly completed the upgrade of its Culver City, Calif., operations. more » » »
- Smithsonian Puts Its Brand on HD
This summer, producers of the new series Aerial America will wing their way across the United States as part of an ambitious plan to film all 50 states in high-definition. Aerial America, which has already completed filming California and Hawaii, is only one of several high-profile original series shot in HD that the Smithsonian Channel hopes will make it a major player in the HD space. more » » »
Q&A
 Q&A: Harmonic’s Keith Rothschild
As cable operators struggle to add more high-def content, they also face increasing demands on their networks for faster Internet speeds and more interactive services. In a lengthy interview, Harmonic’s senior manager of cable solutions and strategies, Keith Rothschild discusses those challenges and describes some of the strategies they’re using to retain their competitive edge. more » » »
BRIEFING ROOM
- Dish: HD Ramp-Up Ahead of Schedule
(From a July 11 article at Broadcastingcable.com)
Direct-to-home satellite operator Dish Network said late Thursday that it will launch 17 new national HD channels Aug. 1, meeting its previously stated goal of broadcasting 100 national HD channels by year-end some five months ahead of schedule. Dish will also unveil an HD-only programming packed called “TurboHD” that starts at $24.99 per month. TurboHD offers the most-watched HD channels in four separate tiers and can be viewed on analog, digital and HDTVs, since Dish’s HD set-tops can also provide a downconverted analog version of an HD channel. more » » »
- FiOS TV Adding Big Ten Network
(From a July 9 article at Broadcastingcable.com)
Big Ten Network will be available on Verizon Communications’ FiOS TV service in both standard-definition and HD under terms of a carriage agreement between the regional sports network and the telephone company. FiOS TV was already offering Big Ten Network in the Fort Wayne, Ind., area, and the Internet-protocol-TV service will launch the RSN region-by-region during the next few months. more » » »
- CBS Evening News Gears Up for HD`
(From a July 7th issue of Broadcasting & Cable magazine)
As it prepares to launch the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric in HD later this month, CBS News is putting the final coat of polish on a glossy new control room that will not only support the newscast's move to the 1080-line interlaced HD format but also give CBS producers and directors more space and an improved work flow for events such as Election Night. The HD control room has been one of several multi-year engineering projects underway to revamp production facilities and playout infrastructure at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street in New York. more » » »
- MGM HD Adds to Executive Team
(From a July 7 article at Broadcastingcable.com)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer named some key executives for its MGM HD movie channel, including Gracelyn Brown, who will serve as vice president, programming, responsible for all programming and scheduling for the start-up network, Bernard Nguyen-Sovan, who becomes manager of programming, focusing on special events and specials for MGM HD and Doug Chalfant, who was named executive creative director. more » » »
- ABC Moves Corwin to NYC for HD
(From a July 3 article at Broadcastingcable.com)
ABC News' top technical executive in Washington, D.C., Jeff Corwin, is moving to New York to focus on HDTV production. Corwin, director of broadcast operations and engineering in D.C., is making the move to New York to work on HDTV production, which is being ramped up but won't be done out of D.C. Doug White, manager of electronic-newsgathering services for BO&E in Washington, will assume Corwin's duties until a permanent replacement is found, according to the network. more » » »
- NBCU Blankets the Beijing Olympic Games
(From a July 14 article in Multichannel News magazine)
With opening ceremonies a month away, NBC Universal's seven networks plan record-setting coverage of the Beijing Olympics that will all in high-definition for the first time. From Aug. 8 to 24, NBC, USA, MSNBC, CNBC, Oxygen, Telemundo and Universal HD, as well as NBCOlympics.com, will offer some 3,600 hours of coverage. That's 1,000 more hours than all other televised Summer Olympics combined, from Rome in 1960 through Athens in 2004. Universal HD will offer 379 hours: 24-hour HD simulcasts and encores from CNBC and MSNBC. more » » »
- 'DTA’ Means 100-plus more linear HD Channels
(From a July 14 article in Multichannel News magazine)
Columnist Leslie Ellis explores the HD implications of DTA, what she calls new one from the Department of Three-Letter Acronyms. DTA stands for Digital Terminal Adapter (or “digital-to-analog”). “A digital terminal adapter is a cable-specific thing,” she writes. “It’s a small, low-cost gizmo that offers a way to free up bandwidth for more HD channels, ethnic programming, and the channel-bonding magic that comes out of DOCSIS 3.0.” more » » »
- Mojo Provides Definition To Olympians
(From a July 7 article at Multichannel.com)
Mojo HD is getting into the Olympic spirit with a series of profiles on some of the U.S. athletes that have a chance to medal in Beijing. Working with USA Today Live, the TV arm of the national newspaper, Mojo has created a 10-part, all high-definition series exploring the mindsets and motivations of athletes from an array of different sports that will premier nationally on Mojo HD, starting July 28. more » » »
- Comcast Video Wall Transfixes Philly
(From a July 5 article at Multichannel.com)
The starring attraction of the 58-story Comcast Center in downtown Philadelphia is an 83-by-25-foot, 10-million-pixel high-definition video wall that displays a loop of different images and scenes. The LED screen modules and processors were manufactured by Belgian imaging equipment maker Barco and according to Comcast, it’s the largest 4-millimeter LED screen in the world, providing five times the resolution of HDTV and 30% greater resolution than IMAX screens. The wall comprises 6,771 individual Barco NX-4 LED modules, each of which is able to reproduce 281 trillion colors. more
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- AOC Bows Combo HD Panel
(From a July 11 article at Twice.com)
AOC is positioning its latest flat panel, the 2230Fm, as a “true HD monitor, HDTV, digital picture frame and multimedia player,” all in one 22-inch device. The company is calling its new product the result of HD3 Display technology. The device, which at first glance appears to be a computer monitor, features a built-in media player that will allow a user to view content without the use of an attached PC or DVD player. It has a proprietary menu format and remote control for users to find their content on a variety of attached memory devices. more » » »
- Sharp Kicks Off HDTV/MLB Promotions
(From a July 11 article at Twice.com)
Sharp launched Friday a nationwide consumer promotion for its HDTVs timed with the start of Major League Baseball's (MLB) All-Star Week, July 11–15. The sweepstakes will involve a retail blitz and multiple live activations in and around New York City during All-Star week. During the campaign, Sharp will award more than 1,000 prizes including trips, dozens of Aquos products and 12 chances to meet an MLB player. Twelve grand-prize winners will receive an Aquos LCD TV, “delivered” personally by an MLB player. more » » »
- CKodak Unveils New HD Product Slate
(From a July 10 article at Twice.com)
Kodak has introduced several new products, including its first media player, an HD camcorder and its first wireless frames to access third-party content sites. The $299 Kodak Theatre HD media player connects to HDTVs and wirelessly to networked PCs via Wi-Fi. In addition to personal digital content, including videos, music and photos, the device can access Kodak’s Gallery Web site, the photo-sharing site Flickr, YouTube and the Internet radio site RadioTime. more » » »
AROUND THE WEB
- Sharp Builds $9 Billion Plant for LCDs
The Wall Street Journal reports that Sharp Corp. is building a $9 billion factory complex the size of 32 baseball stadiums to make liquid-crystal-display panels and solar panels. The complex, which Sharp broke ground last November, will be the world's largest LCD and next-generation solar panel plant when it is ready sometime in the next fiscal year, ending March 2010. But there are big risks. Several companies are planning new plants that will significantly increase global supplies, which could lead to price declines and some rivals like Sony Corp. also are developing next-generation technologies like the organic light-emitting diode, or OLED, which could eventually make LCD technology obsolete. more » » »
- Cablevision Ups HD Channel Count
Reuters reports that Cablevision Systems Corp will give customers another 15 free high-definition channels. As it faces stiffer competition from satellite TV providers and Verizon’s FiOS TV, the operator will add such HD simulcast channels as Discovery, Nickelodeon, FX, FOX News, AMC and The Weather Channel on July 28, bringing its HD offering to 60 channels. Cablevision said more than 1.1 million of its digital cable subscribers have at least one high-definition TV and HD-enabled set-top box. more » » »
- Grocers Begin Offering Blu-ray
Video Business reports that as grocers are bagging more DVDs for customers, they are also starting to offer Blu-ray disc titles at supermarkets. In March, the Southwest division of Kroger began testing Blu-ray sales at 10 of its 250 stores, said Gary Huddleston, the company’s director of consumer affairs. Giant Eagle also has begun slotting Blu-ray titles in some of its outlets this year. Huddleston admits that Blu-ray sales are simply “OK,” but he expects improvement through the end of 2008. more » » »
- RCN Adds More HD In NYC
CedMagazine reports that RCN Corp. had 10 new high-definition (HD) channels in its New York City footprint. The 10 new HD channels are Discovery Channel-HD, Animal Planet-HD, The Learning Channel-HD, HGTV-HD, The Science Channel-HD, Lifetime Movie Networks-HD, Food Network-HD, Travel Channel-HD, VERSUS/Golf-HD and NFL Networks-HD. In addition, RCN said it’s expanding its HD content in its video-on-demand (VOD) service. more » » »
- Panasonic Becomes Official Eurosport HD Partner
The British website, 4RFV reports that Panasonic Electronics and the Eurosport Group have inked a European-wide deal that makes Panasonic the official partner to Eurosport's new high-definition television simulcast service, Eurosport HD. The main aim of Panasonic is to connect with consumers and promote HDTV in homes across Europe. As part of the deal, the pan-European cable and satellite channel Eurosport will also use Panasonic HPX2100 and HVX201 high-definition cameras for coverage of the Olympic Games. more » » »
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