Today's High-Def Headlines

A Murky High-Def Picture in L.A. - L.A. Times

Pity the Los Angeles residents who lug home pricey high-definition television sets only to find that most of their shows don't look much better. The entertainment capital of the world ranks last among the five biggest U.S. markets in the number of high-definition channels available to cable-TV subscribers. New York, Chicago, Houston and Philadelphia all get far more, as do such smaller cities as San Diego and Charlotte, N.C.

AT&T's York Scopes Out HD Plans - MCN

AT&T has shifted into overdrive on subscriber acquisition for U-verse TV, shooting to nearly double its midyear count to end 2008 with 1 million customers. A compelling high-definition lineup is a crucial part of meeting that goal, says Dan York, AT&T’s executive vice president of content. But he notes that the telco needs to balance channel counts with programming costs. York recently spoke with Multichannel News technology editor Todd Spangler about the HD arms race, as well as multiplatform content distribution and the challenges of cutting deals in a business driven by volume discounts.

Plasma TV On the Rebound? - CNET News.com

It appears the TV industry's self-prescribed medicine of pushing smaller flat-panel sets is working. The second-quarter check-up is in, and the industry is in far better health than a year ago. DisplaySearch's Quarterly Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report was released Thursday, and worldwide TV shipments increased 11 percent from the same period in 2007, but just 3 percent from first quarter of 2008.

Paramount Launches Blu-ray Upgrade Promo - TWICE

Paramount Home Entertainment revealed a special Blu-ray Disc promotion Wednesday that will give consumers a $10 upgrade rebate for upgrading their Paramount and DreamWorks DVDs with Blu-ray versions of the same titles. The promotion, which begins with the Sept. 2 release of “Transformers,” will enable purchasers to mail-in promotional certificates located in the packaging of the Blu-ray products, along with the proof-of-purchase tabs from both the DVD and Blu-ray versions.

Q&A: Microsoft Mediaroom's Jim Baldwin - MCN

Worldwide Microsoft has become the leading provider of IPTV services to some of the world’s largest telcos, including AT&T in the United States. Jim Baldwin, senior director of engineering, at Microsoft Mediaroom talks about some of the advantages that IPTV offers the telcos in the race to add more HD content.