Will We Ever Be Able to Get a HD Only Package?

Hi everybody!

Earlier this week, Dish Network announced that they will be launching 22 new HD channels. This will give Dish Network 95 HD channels, and DirecTV 104 HD channels. Even though cable companies are extremely far behind in the HD broadcasting department, this got me wondering. Will we begin to see HD only packages available to subscribers in the near future?

It seems to be a strange question at first, but here’s my reasoning. I currently subscribe to DirecTV and the only channels I watch (almost at least) are the HD channels. It just looks much better than their regular signal, regardless whether the channel is actually showing an HD program or not. Plus, almost every major network on Dish and DirecTV has a HD feed now. I doubt that I’m the only person that pretty much only watches the HD channels now that so many of the networks are broadcasting these HD signals.

Maybe it’s just a pipe-dream, but I’m hoping that this does become a package available as I would surely sign up. In my hometown, cable offers about 80 channels total (not including premium channels like HBO and Showtime). If you want all 80 of these channels they charge an insane $60 per month. Quite frankly, there are more HD channels in Dish and DirecTV’s line-up now if you include the premium channels and sports channels that I think they could easily offer an HD + Local channels only package for $60 to $70 per month.

Maybe some aggressive packages like that would get the big cable companies off their butts and start offering new HD content in order to continue competing. They’ve been lagging behind the technology curve for far too long, with prices far too high as it is.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this idea. Would you pay for a HD only package like the one I suggested above? Do you have any other ideas that may be even better?