DirecTV Inc. debuted an HDTV package July 1 that includes ESPN HD, Discovery HD Theater, HDNet and HDNet Movies, priced at $10.99 a month.
DirecTV now offers seven HDTV channels. Home Box Office and Showtime subscribers get HBO HDTV and Showtime HDTV in their premium packages, and HD pay-per-view movies for $4.99 each.
DirecTV also plans to start offering HDTV telecasts of pro football games.
EchoStar Communications Corp.'s Dish Network offers five HDTV channels: HBO, Showtime, Discovery HD Theater, a PPV movie channel and CBS in 17 cities where it has owned-and-operated stations.
EchoStar says HBO and Showtime HDTV are free with subscriptions to the premium channels. Discovery Theater is available for $7.99 per month ($95.88 per year) and CBS HDTV is free with the purchase of a $5.99 per-month local channels package, or $4.99 per month without a local-channels subscription. PPV HDTV pricing varies by event.
EchoStar expects to launch HDNet and HDNet Movies this summer, and a new service — SuperDish — later on. It will give subscribers access to as many as 50 HDTV channels, as they become available.
