ION Media Networks Launches High Definition
ION Television to Premiere in HD First Quarter 2009
qubo and ION Life Scheduled for HD Upgrade Later in 2009
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- ION Media Networks, Inc., owner and operator of the nation's largest television station group, today announced plans to launch its suite of networks � ION Television, qubo, and ION Life � in high definition (HD) in 2009. ION Television, the Company's flagship general entertainment network, will be available as ION Television HD beginning the first quarter. The HD simulcast of the newly rebranded "Positively Entertaining" network will serve to fully enhance consumers' overall viewing experience.
"We've made significant investments in infrastructure and content to bring excellent picture quality to consumers in time for the digital transition," said Brandon Burgess, Chairman and CEO, ION Media Networks. "Our viewers in the 94 million homes we serve will enjoy the full benefits of DTV technology."
Viewers can look forward to a mix of compelling television series, theatrical and made-for-television movies and specials on ION Television HD. The ION Television network features hit programs from CBS Television, NBC Universal, RHI Entertainment, Sony Pictures Television, Twentieth Television and Warner Bros., among others. The network's fall 2008 lineup is led by off-network hits including "NCIS," "Boston Legal" and "ER." Award-winning, critically acclaimed miniseries and original productions will be made available in high quality HD, as will blockbuster theatrical movies such as "Batman Returns," "GoodFellas," "Analyze This," and "You've Got Mail."
ION Media Networks' digital TV brands, qubo, a multilingual kids network that champions literacy and positive values, and ION Life, a digital network dedicated to active lifestyles and personal growth, will also be upgraded to high definition later in 2009.
ION Television in HD will be launched from its newly designed, state-of-the-art transmission platform via expanded satellite transponder capacity. That national distribution will then be delivered over-the-air via DTV broadcast, cable, telco-TV and satellite. The network will feature native and up-converted HD programming, and will be carried on all 60 of ION Media Network's television stations around the country.
About ION Media Networks
ION Media Networks, Inc. owns and operates the nation's largest broadcast television station group and ION Television, which reaches over 94 million U.S. television households via its nationwide broadcast television, cable and satellite distribution systems, and features popular TV series and movies from the award-winning libraries of RHI Entertainment, CBS Television, NBC Universal, Sony Pictures Television, Twentieth Television and Warner Bros., among others. Using its digital multicasting capability, the Company has launched several digital TV brands, including qubo, a channel for children focusing on literacy and values, and ION Life, a channel dedicated to active living and personal growth. It also has launched Open Mobile Ventures Corporation (OMVION), a business unit focused on the research and development of portable, mobile and out-of-home transmission technology using over-the-air digital television spectrum. For more information, visit www.ionmedia.com.
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