Conditions are right for the ascendancy of high-definition television (HDTV) over its analog counterpart, according to Bryan Burns, vice president, strategic business planning and development at ESPN Productions. Citing statistics from the Consumer Electronics Association, he predicts that in 2006 the number of people who purchase HDTV sets will be equal to the number who buy analog sets. Other trends, including the availability of new gaming equipment in HDTV, the existing capability for HD home video, and easy financing for high-definition television-capable sets, are creating the necessary forces for HDTV dominance.

ESPN, for its part, is producing HDTV programming for its ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD, and ABC Sports HD programming line-ups. Next year, for example, ESPN will produce more than 600 live HD telecasts, a number that Burns said “amounts to a spectacular growth in HD special event telecasts over a mere three-and-half years ago,” when 87 such productions were broadcast.

The resulting impact on ESPN’s satellite usage has been dramatic, Burns said. HD telecasts not only are much more bandwidth-intensive, they are “exponentially more difficult and expensive,” he said.

One added complexity, he explained, is the on-site encryption needed for each live event: “The standards are much more exacting.” As a result, ESPN needs to spend more time, and money, to set-up for HD telecasts. The results, however, are worth the cost. “We are, indeed, generating revenue and are above plan,” he commented, adding that, “thoughtfully done, this business can generate revenue.”