Discovery HD Gets Three IMAX Films

[Gregg Lengling]

Discovery HD Theater is taking a trio of IMAX Corp. films to the small screen.

The 24-hour high-definition network, which bowed in June, has converted and will telecast three IMAX films this fall, beginning Monday night with Africa's Elephant Kingdom and following with The Human Body and Wildfire.

The presentation of these films will mark the first-ever telecine transfer of an IMAX 15/70 format -- which is 10 times larger than a conventional 35-millimeter film and three times larger than a standard 70-mm film -- directly into an HDTV format.

Originally filmed in IMAX's 15/70mm format, the movies have been transferred to 1080 high-definition format for their upcoming debuts on Discovery HD Theater.

Africa's Elephant Kingdom, following an extended pachyderm family, bows on the HDTV network Monday night at 8 p.m.

The Human Body, presenting a look at the biological processes that go on inside us, will premiere on Discovery HD Theater Nov. 10, while Wildfire, providing viewers with an up close look at one of nature's most powerful forces and the men and women who battle them, will premiere on the network Dec. 1.

'We're delighted to present these three IMAX films on Discovery HD Theater,' said John Ford, president of the new-media division for Discovery Networks U.S., in a prepared statement.

'Never before have television viewers been able to appreciate anything close to the drama of a larger-than-life, crystal-clear IMAX film,' he added. 'Now, viewers can feel like they're right there on the plains of Africa, coursing through the human body, or fighting a ferocious wildfire. These films demonstrate the level of innovative, high-quality programming that is the hallmark of Discovery HD Theater.'


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Gregg R. Lengling
RCA P61310 61" 16x9
glengling@ameritech.net

[gparris]

Please tell me where I can get HD Discovery Theater so I can enjoy these wonderful IMAX films on my Mits (like you are?)! Do they come on tape like the HDNET ones do for transmission wirefire to my set or what? How do you get this channel? I have DIRECTV and can't find it. Didn't see it on TWC digital, either, at a friend's house, and he said he has it "all" from TWC. How can Discovery make any money on this if it is so hard to find and as I understand it, been around since,what-April or May?
Thank you for the news, though, however confusing since I can't watch it/find it. Let me (us) know how to get this great channel or tape. Thanks in advance.

[Gregg Lengling]

Discovery HD is only a couple months old and you're right no-one around here can get it.  Warner hasn't added it and when you ask Directv they give you the usual line that they don't discuss coming upgrades/changes until they announce them publicly.  I'm not holding my breath for Directv to add it as they are always screaming about not having enough bandwith, but my latest research shows that their one bird (I forget the orbital degrees but it's the middle one on my triple LNB) only has Show HD, Triple LNB test and something else so I know they have plenty of space...so who knows maybe sometime soon...but they might have been waiting for the EchoStar merger but I don't think that's going to happed with the DOJ saying no to the plan and the FCC also planning on panning it.


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Gregg R. Lengling
RCA P61310 61" 16x9
glengling@ameritech.net

[AndrewP]

Dish Network has Discover HD for extra $7 or so a month. Right now.

Andrew

[gparris]

Thanks-I now know it was not my imagination but - how do these Discovery guys do it?  Is it a "loss leader" to show this channel and no one gets it? By this I mean to cover costs by other means and write it off until TWC or DIRECTV come to their senses?
 I have installed my 3rd LNB for the 110 degree W.L. satellite when SHo HD came in (finally) and the rumored promise was Discover HD - yeah,right!!  Maybe Murdoch will embrace HD unlike his FOX network for DIRECTV's buyout when he gets them (Dish is dead for this I'll wager) and even if the price is higher, I'll take it if it means more HD. Then again, TWC surprises me when I go out of state and now - TMJ soon in Milw. with HD! Go figure. If all this HD tramsmission in other areas of our country become old reruns before "Milw. Land" gets HD - I don't care: Alias, Smallville, and any CBS and Discovery programs will look like "new" in HD- reruns or not...!

[gparris]

 

Originally posted by AndrewP:
Dish Network has Discover HD for extra $7 or so a month. Right now.

Andrew

Thanks Andrew but I do not think I need more equipment already. The monthly cost and the extra dishes on my roof will make it look like a cable company backlot. And so what if DISH has it-6 or so million paying $7 a month hardly justifies the loss of showing it to the few of the 6 million buying it. But it does raise the question of why a dish merger should not occur or should...more available spectrum due to no duplication of services or ... more competition?

[AndrewP]

I do not know all technical details but you will be required to buy extra card for Dish 6000 model ($100) in order watch Discover HD. They use some kind of new compressed signal to tramsmit this station. Also the claim that all additional HD chanells will require this card.
TWC is very bad for HD tvs.
1. TWC box is very bad for HD chanels. Especially when a signal is in SD format. You just cannot watch it because you will have black bars on screen and picture is poor.
2. Signal quality for channels 2-69 is very poor. Digital channel signals are not so bad.
3. No support for OTA signals. You will need extra STB box to watch local HD stations.
4. As of now cable is very limited in bandwidth to provide additional HD content.

So I switched to Dish and I am pretty satisfied with my choice. Dish 6000 receiver box have the ability to receive OTA signals. So no need to buy extra box.
Picture quality is much better then TWC.
I do not like their approach for Discover HD subscription. But maybe it is a Discover HD idea.

Andrew

[Pat]

Dish continues to be the more responsive company of the two, and I understood IT would be the survivor in any merger, not DirectTV.

Over the years, in several instances, Dish has provided new technology sooner and has served its customers better.  I wonder if they have better technology or are just a better company.

[tenth_t2]

My gripe with Dish was their delay and subsequent announcement not to carry local channels in Milwaukee.  A few years back DirectTV began, that's why I switched.

Since then, I've had several billing errors with DirectTV and in my observation, the signal drops out much more frequently than it ever did in the 3+ years I was a Dish customer.

I haven't looked lately, but is Dish passing the local channels here now?  If so, I may look to switching back depending on what the HD offerings are like on Dish.  But if I understand correctly, HDNet is only DirectTV, and if DiscoveryHD is $7 a month, I'll pass.

I have a need..... A need for Speed!

Greg O.