[OK] Fox and CW to be added to Cox HD lineup in OKC

Sooner Al · 06-06-2007, 04:47 AM

FWIW department for the folks in the metro OKC market...

From the Oklahoman, 6 June 2007...

http://newsok.com/article/3063008

Quote:

Cox, Sinclair agree to provide high definition to two local TV stations

By Jim Stafford
Business Writer

Sinclair Broadcasting and Cox Communications patched up their differences and announced a new cable retransmission agreement Tuesday that will enable digital cable viewers in Oklahoma City to watch next year's Super Bowl in high definition.

Sinclair owns KOKH Fox 25 and KOCB CW 34 in Oklahoma City.

The long and contentious negotiations had kept the high definition broadcasts of both stations off the Cox digital cable lineup, meaning that Major League baseball, NFL football and other high profile sports and entertainment programming were not available in HD to local cable viewers.

"I'm pleased that we've accomplished this, and both parties should benefit from it,” said John Rossi, general manager of the Sinclair broadcasting properties in Oklahoma City. "More importantly, the viewers are going to benefit from this.”

No details or financial terms of the deal were released.

New channels added

The agreement means that Cox will add the HD broadcasts of KOCB and KOKH on channels 711 and 712, respectively, Cox officials said in a news release.
Currently, the analog broadcast of KOCB is available on cable Channel 11, while KOKH programming is seen on Channel 12.

"Cox is pleased to add Fox and CW in HD to our lineup,” said Dave Bialis, general manager of Cox Oklahoma.

"We're committed to offering our customers the quality, high-definition channels they want with the convenience they have come to expect from Cox.”

To access high-definition content, customers must have a high-definition television and an HD-enabled receiver or CableCARD, available for lease from Cox or an HD antenna available at local retailers.

Cox Communications is headquartered in Atlanta, while Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. is in Baltimore.

The agreement provides for the carriage by cable systems owned by Cox of nine television station signals in six markets owned by Sinclair, servicing about 1.25 million subscribers.