DIRECTV and Disney have come to terms on a carriage agreement for four Disney high-def networks currently in development: ABC Family HD, Disney Channel HD, ESPNEWS HD and Toon Disney HD. The latter three are expected to go live sometime early next year while no timetable for ABC Family HD was given.
Occasionally I am asked by consumers whether they should go with DIRECTV or DISH for satellite service. When it comes to HD, I suppose that depends on how patient you are. DISH clearly is far ahead of DIRECTV in the number of high-def channels available today: DISH has 30-34, depending on whether HD local channels are available in your area, while DIRECTV has 9-14, with the same caveat. (15 of DISH's channels came from the now-defunct VOOM satellite system.)
However, DIRECTV has said it plans to offer 100 national HD channels by year's end. This has always seemed a little implausible to me, as there are nowhere near 100 non-local HD channels yet available and many of the ones that are in development (like Disney's) won't be ready until next year. Regardless, DIRECTV's plans will at some point come to fruition and the question is whether DISH will be in a position to match its rival.
So again, what it boils down to is how much patience you have. If you want the most HD channels you can get today, DISH is the clear choice (unless Verizon FiOS TV or AT&T U-verse is available in your area, in which case those merit your serious consideration). But a year from now, DIRECTV may beg to differ.
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I actually had VOOM for about 2 months and the HD stations were very limited. The movie channels showed B flicks that would be hard to find on DVD. There was a cartoon channel that showed cartoons I had never seen or heard about.
If DISH took over those stations, trust me, it's not worth jumping to DISH, especially if you have DirecTV.
- Joe
Glastonbury, CT
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