HBO will offer more HD channels than any other network brand when it switches all 26 of its feeds to the high-definition format.
“We have a long history of firsts in technology: satellite, multiplex and SVOD,” HBO Chairman and CEO Bill Nelson said Tuesday. “Such a commitment reinforces our tradition of giving our customers the best programming when they want it and how they want it.”
The availability of the HBO and Cinemax channels may add fuel to the ongoing HD battle between cable and satellite operators, with each vying to provide the most HD feeds to their customers.
A spokesman for DirecTV, the biggest U.S. satellite TV service, said the service will carry 11 of the channels as part of its HD initiative launching in September. A spokesman for Comcast, the biggest U.S. cable company, said it has no firm agreements in place yet to carry the channels.
With the introduction of HBO HDTV in 1999 and Cinemax HDTV in 2003, the Time Warner-owned pay cable franchise was the first national cable network to offer high-def feeds.
The network’s all-digital multiplex packages include:
HBO (East/West)HBO2 (East/West)
HBO Signature (East/West)
HBO Comedy (East/West)
HBO Family (East/West)
HBO Zone (East/West)
HBO Latino (East/West)
Cinemax (East/West)
MoreMAX (East/West)
ActionMAX (East/West)
ThrillerMAX (East/West)
WMAX (East)
@MAX (East)
5StarMAX (East)
OuterMAX (East)
HBO Commits All 26 Feeds to HD
Jun 12, 2007 • Post A Comment
Every network will be adding more and more HD Channels, But what about video quality? Doesn’t HBO already cut back to a resolution of 960 in order to save bandwidth? What about at the distribution end? Cable operators, Satellite providers. They need to save bandwidth more than anyone. How much compression is too much? Direct TV is already taking heat for their poor quality HD. As consumers become educated about HD, they will become more demanding. Then who will compete for the quality minded consumer?
– Danny Cahn –
Verizon fios does not compress channels. i hope they carry some or all of the HBO feeds. all their HD channels look great compared to the directv i used to have.