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Cinemax going 100% high-definition on September 1st
We already knew that Home Box Office was champing at the bit to rid itself of anything less than pure, unadulterated (okay, maybe just a little bit) HD, and now the outfit is announcing that its Cinemax channel will be going 100% high-def on September 1st. Granted, we're talking about the main channel only here, but this fall / winter is shaping up to be a good one for Cinemax HD. Subscribers will see the pay-TV premieres of The Bourne Ultimatum, Rendition, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and The Darjeeling Limited, and in the near future, viewers will see I Am Legend, Juno, Alien vs. Predator: Requiem and In The Valley of Elah. Of note, the release states that "true HD (1080i)" won't begin until September 6th -- odd, but we suppose a few extra days won't kill us. [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family]
1080p channels on the way, according to Tandberg CEO
Tandberg TV is preparing for the next big thing in broadcast HD - 1080p. According to CEO Eric Cooney, satellite providers are already preparing to offer full HD channels in the next few years to separate themselves from cable and IPTV competition with more limited bandwidth. Aside from the company's current projects rolling out MPEG-4, he sees 1080p/60Hz as an inevitable progression, with the hardware already in place. Three years from now, after switched digital's hit and fiber continues to expand its territory offering "Blu-ray quality movies" might be a great selling point for Dish and DirecTV, although we shudder to think what kind of DVR we'd need to store the programming.
HD version of Hallmark Movie Channel coming in Q1 2008
Those who've found themselves skipping right over the Hallmark Movie Channel solely due to its standard-definition nature can start rejoicing, as Crown Media Holdings is reportedly set to launch an HD simulcast of the station next year. Henry Schleiff, president and CEO of Crown Media, owner of Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel, "unveiled plans for Hallmark Movie Channel HD during a second-quarter conference call," and he also noted that it would "include the presentation of many Hallmark Channel original movies in their pure high-definition form." No word on a hard launch date just yet, but look for it to show up sometime in Q1 2008.
DirecTV to deliver 70 HD channels by the end of Q3?
We've heard so many promises from DirecTV that we hardly take them seriously anymore, but according to CEO Chase Carey, the satellite provider will indeed be beaming out "70 HD channels" by the end of Q3. Reportedly, the comments were uttered during the firm's second-quarter conference call, and it was noted that there were deals currently in place for 90 HD networks. Furthermore, Carey stated that it had "20 or 30 channels that would need a couple of months to get an HD feed online, which is why it will grow from 70 to over 100 in those few months." Again, this is far from the first assurance we've had that the elusive "100 HD channels" are actually coming soon, but considering that the DirecTV 10 is successfully in orbit and the DirecTV 11 should be headed there soon, maybe there's some truth to this one.
