DirecTV sees 100 HD channels

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LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Top U.S. satellite TV operator DirecTV Group Inc. plans to announce on Monday it has secured agreements for 60 high-definition channels from major networks, as part of a goal to launch 100 of them this year.

The channels, expected to debut in the third quarter, will include HD versions of well-known networks including those owned by General Electric-controlled NBC Universal and Time Warner Inc.'s Turner Networks, executives said.

The news will be part of a roster of announcements at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, where DirecTV will also discuss plans to allow subscribers to connect to Internet videos from home computers as well as a portable version of its service that fits in a suitcase, called Sat-Go.

Despite the gadget-heavy focus of the annual confab, where the $145 billion consumer electronics industry this year will trot out new devices that make connecting PCs to TVs easier, DirecTV will also focus on a topic of prior conventions.

"All of these add-ons that enable new features are fantastic," Eric Shanks, executive vice president of DirecTV Entertainment, said in a phone interview ahead of the announcement.

But, "Where the world is going is into HD. None of the wireless products is going to bring you 100 channels of HD. Once you have standard definition content, these things help you share it."

HD video delivers high-resolution pictures and better sound quality, and the promise of more HD programing helped boost sales of flat panel TVs. But buyers soon realized that while cable and satellite operators talked up plans to offer more channels, few actually carry more than a dozen HD channels.

Source: Reuters

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The only channel that seems lock solid is CNN HD which I for one welcome even if its in the US and US only its about time HD news gets out of Local Stations and obscure HD News channel on Dishnetwork.

Do those 100 HD stations include local stations?

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Originally Posted by remlap

Do those 100 HD stations include local stations?

I doubt that DirecTV know that yet. 100 channels? They must be scratching around for content, surely.