Today's High-Def Headlines

DISH’s Ergen Expects 100 HD Nets, 100 Local HD Markets - MCN
Conceding that delays in satellite launches hurt DISH Network competitively, CEO Charlie Ergen said Tuesday that the satellite provider will have 100 national HD networks and local HD channels in 100 markets by the end of the year. Postponement of several satellite launches last year hamstrung the satellite provider’s efforts to expand its local HD offering, he told analysts. At the end of last year, DISH Network had about 70 national HD networks and local HD in 34 markets.

DTV Transition Top of Mind for House, Senate - MCN
Oversight of the digital-TV transition will dominate the broadcast legislative agenda in both the House and Senate, according to key staffers from both houses and both sides of the aisle. That message was delivered to a roomful of broadcasters--organizers estimated it at at about 600--attending the National Association of Broadcasters' State Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. Those broadcasters are in town to meet with Federal Communications Commission officials and legislators.

Voom Files Suit Against EchoStar - MCN
An intra-family battle is brewing between Rainbow Media’s Voom suite of high-definition services and Voom satellite owner EchoStar Satellite LLC. Earlier this month, New York State Supreme Court judge Richard Lowe granted Voom a preliminary injunction/temporary restraining order barring EchoStar’s Dish Network from moving the HD service’s 15 channels to a lower-penetrated HD tier, according to sources close to both parties.

Source: Samsung Finalizing LCD Line Talks With Sony - Reuters/News.com
Samsung Electronics is in the final stages of talks with Sony to jointly build a new LCD production line, a Samsung source said on Wednesday, soothing concerns that their alliance is in jeopardy.
Sony, which unveiled plans to invest in Sharp's new panel plant on Tuesday, and the South Korean company may also cooperate on another, bigger line for liquid crystal display (LCD) panels used in flat-screen TVs, according to the source, who declined to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the press.