Attached is the press release stating that Adelphia and DirecTV will carry ESPN2HD and VOOM apparently will not. This is quite shocking to me that VOOM actually let DirecTV beat them to an HD channel. Their competitive advantage has always been to carry HD channels upon launch. This could be VOOM on the way out. What a shame.
ESPN TO LIGHT UP ESPN2 HD
ESPN2 HD TO LAUNCH LIVE FROM CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOW
Las Vegas, Nev. – ESPN2 HD, a high-definition simulcast of ESPN2, will launch Thursday at 7 p.m. EST. The opening night tripleheader will feature top teams from three different conferences - Conference USA, the Big 12 and West Coast Conference: DePaul at #20 Cincinnati (7 p.m.), Memphis at #11 Texas (9 p.m.) and #17 Gonzaga at Santa Clara (11 p.m.). The countdown for the service will take place at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas where executives from ESPN and the Consumer Electronic Association will be present to commemorate the launch.
ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD will offer a total of 82 live events in the first 83 days of 2005 across both services. This includes all Saturday primetime basketball match-ups, and a total 28 games as part of Championship Week Presented by 7UP. Rivalry Week, Presented by Cisco Systems, will include top games such as Villanova at St. Joseph's (ESPN2 HD), Boston College at Notre Dame (ESPN2 HD), #24 N.C. State at #3 Wake Forest (ESPN HD), Notre Dame at #12 Pittsburgh (ESPN HD) and #6 Duke at #23 Maryland (ESPN HD).
Distribution agreements for ESPN2 HD have been signed with DIRECTV, Inc. and Adelphia Communications.
“The future of television is here and we are thrilled to launch our second high-definition service live from the Consumer Electronics Show,” said Bryan Burns, vice president strategic planning and business development, ESPN. “We will take full advantage of every opportunity across our two HD services to maximize the number of dates on which fans can see an originally-produced event on either ESPN HD or ESPN2 HD. This is another big day in the development of HD programming.”
In celebration of the launch of ESPN2 HD, 291,827 fans voted on ESPN.com and selected the game that analyst Dick Vitale will call on opening night of the service. Their choice with over 45% of the votes, Memphis at Texas (9 p.m.), was revealed January 1 during ESPN’s coverage of #9 Georgia Tech at #2 Kansas