EchoStar Promotes NFL Network HD
EchoStar Dish Network announced Wednesday that it will have 24-hour carriage of NFL Network HD, according to TVPredictions.com. The total package, which will cost $29.99 a month, offers more than 100 sports and non-sports channels, and includes both standard and HD versions of the NFL Network. Thirty-four pre-season and eight regular games will air in HD this year. Time Warner Cable is one of the cable operators that will not offer the NFL Network in either format, the report said.

Blu-ray Takes the Lead
Movie titles in the Blu-ray DVD format have exceeded sales of films in the competing format, HD DVD, by a 2-to-1 margin in the U.S. for the first half of 2007, Home Media Research reported Tuesday. Research found that 1.6 million Blu-ray discs were sold from Jan. 1 through July 1, compared with 795,000 HD DVD discs during the same time. The successful release of the film “300”in August gave Blu-ray an edge, showing sales of about 190,000 Blu-ray units versus 97,000 in HD DVD, according to the report.

HDTV How-to
Need help understanding your HDTV? The DVD Acquisition & Development Group on Wednesday announced Joe Kane Productions’ “Digital Video Essentials: HD Basics” will be available on both HD DVD and Blu-ray. The DVD features tips on setup and how to get the most out of the high-definition television set. “While HDTV sales are exploding, the reality is that most users still do not completely understand HD and are not enjoying the optimum picture on their sets,” said David Goodman, president of the DVD Acquisition & Development Group. One special feature of the DVD is six calibration test patterns that promise to dramatically improve a high-def image. The DVD will be available Oct. 30 at a retail price of $29.95.