MTV Networks International (owned by Viacom) plans to go up with its first HD cable venue outside North America later this month. Most of the channels are earmarked for Western Europe and Latin America. At the same time, MTV indicates it will slow some of its ambitious overseas growth until the global economy can steady itself a bit.

The new channel, MTV Networks High Definition (MTVNHD), will launch on Monday, Sept. 15. Initially it plans to air about 300 hours of new music and kids' programming. MTVNHD will air all its content in English, to begin with, and will be first made available to Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Poland and Sweden.

By the end of this year, MTV said it will inaugurate the HD service in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom in Europe, along with Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela in Latin America.