DirecTV says it will leapfrog its competition this fall with the launch of “the best and largest selection of HD channels that customers ever imagined.”

DirecTV recently announced that it has agreements in place for carriage of several additional HD channels, with plans to have the count up to 100 by year's end.

There were some Doubting Thomases out there, perhaps, who never really believed that DBS firm Dish (or anyone else, for that matter) could provide 100 HD channels before 2009 rolled around.

Satellite firm DirecTV has been talking all year about ramping up an ambitious line-up of HD channels, with up to 100 outlets to be offered by year’s end.

In the ongoing battle between cable and DBS providers (and within the satellite industry itself) to see who can provide the most HD content in the shortest amount of time, DirecTV seems to be making good on its promise to provide at least 100 HD venues by the close of 2007.

DirecTV began to make good on its promised offering of 100 HD channels by recently making available 21 new high-def services, boosting its total to 31 HD networks.

The DBS company said with its new satellite (DirecTV 11) recently introduced to its fleet in orbit, and the anticipated launch of its DirecTV 12 space bird sometime in 2009, it should have the technical capacity to deliver as many as 200 national HD channels.