ESPN Reaches HD Cable Deals

ESPN HD, the 24/7 high-definition simulcast service of ESPN, has announced cable carriage of its new service, scheduled to launch Sunday, March 30.

So far, Insight Communications, Cox Communications, the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC), Service Electric Cable TV Inc., Utilacom and Comporium Communications systems have all agreed to carry ESPN-HD sports channel.

All total, the above cable operators serve more than 22 million subscribers across the U.S.; however, most are still in the early stages of offering HD service.

ESPN said it will announce additional agreements.

"The rapidly growing base of HDTV users is hungry for more high-definition content, and ESPN is committed to providing them the compelling content they seek," said Sean Bratches, ESPN executive VP of Affiliate Sales and Marketing.