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Starz Launches New HD Movie Networks
DIRECTV First Affiliate to Offer New Services With Package of Five Starz HD
Movie Channels
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Oct. 15 -- Starz Entertainment announced
today the successful launch of its new High Definition (HD) premium movie
channels, Starz Comedy HD, Starz Edge HD and Starz Kids & Family HD. The
new HD offerings together with the flagship Starz HD channel constitute the
largest package of premium HD channels currently available on television.
The three new channels are high definition East Coast feeds of the
Starz Comedy, Starz Edge, and Starz Kids & Family. They join the flagship
Starz HD channels, which are available in East and West Coast feeds. All
five Starz HD offerings are presented in Dolby(R) Digital 5.1 surround
sound, a powerful audio format that provides up to 5.1 separate channels of
crystal-clear digital surround sound that brings entertainment to life.
Beginning today, the new channels, along with the flagship Starz HD
channels, are available at no extra cost to DIRECTV's Starz(R) Super Pack
subscribers with DIRECTV's newest generation of advanced HD set-top boxes
and HD DVRs. DIRECTV is the first affiliate to offer the new channels to
its subscribers.
The Starz HD channels appear on DIRECTV as follows:
-- Starz Kids & Family HD: Channel 518
-- Starz Comedy HD: Channel 519
-- Starz HD (East): Channel 520
-- Starz HD (West) Channel 521
-- Starz Edge HD: Channel 522
Movies currently airing exclusively in True HD on the Starz HD channels
and services include: Disney and Pixar's Cars, Scary Movie 4, Pirates of
the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Gridiron Gang, and Talladega Nights: The
Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Top HD titles coming soon include: Ghost Rider and
The Pursuit of Happyness.
"We are delighted to be at the forefront of offering multiple HD
channels to our affiliates and consumers," said Bill Myers, president and
chief operating officer for Starz Entertainment. "We commend DIRECTV for
being first to market in carrying all five of the Starz HD channels and
meeting the growing consumer demand for quality HD programming.
Myers continued, "Leichtman Research Group research shows that 55% of
people who have (or are interested in getting) HDTV are likewise interested
in receiving premium networks in HD. Starz is meeting this growing demand
in the HD marketplace with exclusive subscription movie programming. HD is
a key part of the Starz business strategy and product mix -- both for
linear channels and on-demand -- and we look forward to additional
opportunities to bring even more movies to market in the future."
Starz Entertainment is the exclusive subscription television and
broadband provider of first-run films from leading Hollywood studios
including Walt Disney Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Overture
Films, Revolution Studios, Miramax Films, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood
Pictures, Pixar, TriStar, Screen Gems, Sony Classics and Warren Miller
Films. Select first-run theatrical films from The Weinstein Company, IFC
and Yari Film Group are also available for subscription television and
broadband exclusively on Starz Entertainment services. A vast collection of
classic and favorite titles are provided by a wide array of other Hollywood
studios.
Starz Entertainment, LLC, is a premium movie service provider operating
in the United States. It offers 16 movie channels including the flagship
Starz(R) and Encore(R) brands with approximately 16.1 million and 28.4
million subscribers respectively. Starz Entertainment airs more than 1,000
movies per month across its pay TV channels and offers advanced services
including Starz HD, Starz On Demand and Vongo(R). Starz Entertainment
(http://www.starz.com) is an operating unit of Starz, LLC, which is a
wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation that is attributed to
Liberty Capital Group.
SOURCE Starz Entertainment, LLC
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