Play Ball: ESPN's Opening Day in HD

[Gregg Lengling]

Sports network takes slightly unorthodox 720p route

By Anthony Crupi


T.S. Eliot wasn't much of a sports fan. After all, anyone who would kick off his magnum opus with the incantation, "April is the cruelest month" couldn't have been in tune with the rhythms of the seasons. February's the month that'll kill you if you let it; the seven-week stretch between the Super Bowl and March Madness is as interminable as an Oscars telecast and twice as stupefying.

This year, fans will be granted some succor from the gods of sport, as Major League Baseball has decided to get a jumpstart on the 2003 season, throwing out the first pitch on March 30. And the news just gets better: As an introduction to its high-definition programming venture, ESPN will carry its opening day telecast of a night game between the Anaheim Angels and the Texas Rangers in HD.

From that day forward, ESPN will offer 100 live HD telecasts this year, including the NBA Eastern Conference Finals, a selection of NHL Stanley Cup Playoff games and its slate of Sunday night NFL games.

In addition to its native broadcasts, most studio shows, including SportsCenter, will be offered in hi-def beginning in 2004. According to Bryan Burns, ESPN VP of strategic business planning and development, the network will upconvert the signal from standard-definition to HD right in its Bristol, Conn., facility.

As is the case with ABC Sports--ESPN's sister company within the Disney family--the network will offer its HD content in the 720p format, rather than 1080i. "We realize that it's not the choice of the industry," said Burns. "But it's not about the number of lines, it's about the 'p' versus the 'i.'"

In other words, although 1080i format offers 360 more lines of resolution, it only refreshes itself 30 times per second. By comparison, the 720p image is refreshed 60 times per second, thus making it the better format for rendering high-action video.

"When you've got pucks and baseballs sailing around and a lot of movement, progressive- scan tech is simply better," Burns said. "That's not to say that this hasn't been a tough decision--there's still a lot more 1080i production gear available out there--but we're confident that 720p will become the standard for sports programming."

No matter what format programmers elect to use for their HD telecasts, it's clear that cable is lining up to offer hi-def to its customers. NCTA data shows that HD is currently available in 62 of the top 100 markets.

"I think you'll find that we'll be offering a compelling argument for carriage," Burns said.

In preparation for the HD rollout, ESPN is constructing a 120,000-square-foot facility in Bristol, set to open in 2004.

THE NEXT QUESTION:
Will ESPN's adoption of the 720p HD format influence other networks to do likewise?