
Washington, D.C. (August 29, 2007) -- DIRECTV told TVPredictions.com tonight that it will likely add from 20 to 40 new High-Definition channels by Sunday, September 16.
That date coincides with the 59th Annual Emmy Awards and DIRECTV has scheduled a post-awards party that night in Los Angeles to promote its new high-def lineup.
Asked tonight if the HDTV expansion will have taken place by the Emmy party, Eric Shanks, DIRECTV's executive vice president of entertainment, said "it will be real close" to that date.
DIRECTV launched a new satellite in July to expand its High-Definition capacity to 100 channels by year's end. (The satcaster plans to launch another satellite to increase the capacity to 150 HD channels next year.)
In an interview with TVPredictions.com, Shanks said DIRECTV will have added 70 new high-def channels by the end of the third quarter, which ends at the end of September. He said it will have the 100 HDTV channels by year's end.
Shanks added that DIRECTV will add a minimum of 20 new HD channels on the first day of the expansion.
"It will be more in the 40 range if all goes well," he said. "It's still fluid so we can't say for sure."
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