MGM HD Gets Distro on Time Warner Cable, Comcast

MGM HD earlier this week announced a carriage deal with Time Warner Cable, coming on the heels of its agreement with Comcast that was made public last week. I spoke with MGM HD senior VP Simon Graty in New Orleans and asked him about his network's strategy when it comes to deciding which movies out of its enormous archive to show on MGM HD. He told me that they view themselves as an HD basic cable movie network a la AMC or Turner Classic Movies rather than a pay-TV movie network like HBO or Showtime. That explains why most of the titles you'll find on MGM HD are less well-known or in some cases, outright obscure -- MGM HD wants to give some of these movies some airtime, and generally it's the first time they'll be available anywhere in high-def.

Some of the events MGM HD is showcasing this month and next include "Manly Movie Marathon," "Mondo Brando" and "The Sexy 1:00s." The network is also planning a James Bond marathon this summer and thus had girls in orange bikinis handing out martinis and po' boy sandwiches at their Cable Show booth.