July 7, 2008

Notable HD: Important/Interesting Initiatives from the High-Def Arena

Already underway in Chicago, RCN’s “Analog Crush” initiative began last week converting its Boston market to an all-digital lineup. The migration will allow the overbuilder to increase its HD offering from 40 nets to approx 100. — DirecTV’s VOD service is out of beta and available to nationwide customers who use certain DVRs. The service offers more than 4K SD and HD titles, downloadable to DVRs through a broadband connection. PPV content is also available. — Sony will soon offer yet another mode for customers to rent movies, announcing that consumers with Bravia TVs and the Bravia Internet Video Link will be able to rent an HD version of its feature film "Hancock" directly over their TV sets in Nov, before it's released on DVD and VOD.