Sunflower Broadband customers should be excited. In fact they should be euphoric. Sunflower announced that 40 addition HD channels will be available beginning June 2. Most importantly, the new lineup will include ESPNU HD, ESPNEWS HD, Golf/Versus HD, Big Ten Network HD and TBS HD. Sunflower needed ensure these channels would be included because they all broadcast live sporting events, including the Major League Baseball Playoffs (TBS) and the Stanley Cup Playoffs (Versus). People do not pay thousands of dollars for HD TVs so they can watch Grey’s Anatomy. They want HD to watch sports.
Sports make HD worth it. They show off the vivid images, and they bring the viewer into the TV like never before. As I wrote earlier, time will tell if HD movies and primetime television shows will convince the skeptics. No one can deny that watching sports in high definition is outstanding. When I watched the Masters this April on CBS HD I thought Tiger Woods protruded from the screen and stepped into my living room. The experience is irreplaceable. When I flipped to TNT HD and watched the movie Happy Gilmore, Adam Sandler was not anywhere near my living room. The point is, no substitute exists for high definition sports, but when it comes to regular TV or movies I will settle for small screens, computer screens or even iPod screen. This is why people will watch their favorite shows online, but they refuse to watch football on any screen smaller than 32 inches. People will complain to waitresses about the lack of HD during the NCAA tournament (I’ve witnessed this), but will get the news from their cell phone. The experience of watching sports in HD cannot be matched and stating in June Sunflower is going to be an industry leader in providing sports channels in HD.
Hockey fans should be the most excited. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are pretty much the only time hockey matters in realm of American TV sports. As a person who watches about 30 minutes of hockey per season I cannot deny the sports its credit: it looks great in high definition. I think HD could be the NHL’s only hope in increasing its TV ratings.
Golf fans should be equally as thrilled. The Versus Network HD is a joint venture with Golf Channel HD, so they split airtime on the same channel. This means whichever channel is airing a live event in HD then that will be the channel Sunflower customers will receive. It sounds like a rip-off, but they play golf during the day and they play playoff hockey games in primetime, so HD subscribers get two for the price of one.
In addition to extra sports channels, Sunflower will add news channels such as CNN HD and other variety networks like AMC HD. The demand for these channels in high definition may not be as great, but Sunflower’s effort to take charge in the HD market will definitely please the rising number of HD customers, help attract new customers, and help Sunflower keep pace with DirectTV and Dish Network.
This link will provide a list of Sunflower's new channel lineup
http://www.sunflowerbroadband.com/cable/channel_lineup/channel_lineup-2008-5.v1.1.pdf