USDTV Reaches More Than 10,000 Subscribers

U.S. Digital Television (USDTV) reported it has surpassed 10,000 subscribers in its current markets--Salt Lake City, Albuquerque and Las Vegas. The company plans to start service in other markets this year. More than half of these subscribers did not subscribe to cable or satellite, relying instead on regular VHF/UHF antennas for TV service. In the announcement USDTV said that it will introduce a set-top box based on Zenith/LG's fifth-generation 8VSB reception technology before the end of 2004. The set-top box will also include an MPEG-4 decoder, which will allow for additional services.

Steve Lindsley, Chairman and CEO of USDTV, Inc., commented, "While this service is important to consumers, it also creates a new recurring revenue stream for broadcasters. Every new subscriber helps build the broadcasters' digital audience. We are pleased with the way consumers are responding to USDTV and believe that our growth will accelerate as we move into a number of new markets over the next several months."

Walmart is selling the set-top boxes under the brand name USDIGITAL in more than 3,000 stores nationwide and on the Internet. When I checked Monday, the Internet price was $198.76. I saw them advertised in the local paper a few weeks ago for just over $200.