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Comcast to Provide WFAA-DT in High Definition Television

Posted on: Tuesday, 6 January 2004, 06:00 CST

IRVING, Texas, Jan. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Comcast has announced that thousands of viewers will receive local news and syndicated programming, as well as ABC network programming in state-of-the-art high definition television (HDTV) beginning today on WFAA-DT.

The longtime local news leader broadcasts numerous network programming in HDTV including "8 Simple Rules,""According to Jim,""My Wife & Kids,""Alias,""The Practice,""I'm with Her,""Line of Fire,""George Lopez Show,""Hope & Faith," and "ABC's Monday Night Football."

A pioneer in broadcast and news gathering technology, WFAA became the first station in the Dallas/Fort Worth television market and America to broadcast a high definition VHF signal. Comcast will carry WFAA's high- definition programming on digital cable channel 652.

HDTV technology provides video and audio that is clearer, sharper and more vibrant than previous video transmission systems. The service is available for customers with an HDTV-capable television set utilizing an HD-enabled digital cable set-top box provided by Comcast.

"Comcast is committed to continually bringing our customers more and better choices for in-home entertainment, and we are thrilled to enhance our HDTV lineup with WFAA's local news programming complimented with ABC's national programming," said Ann Montgomery, Comcast's Regional Senior Vice President for the Southwest Group.

"WFAA has been a leader in the development of high-definition television, launching our over-the-air service in early 1998," said Kathy Clements Hill, the station's President and General Manager. "We are pleased to extend our digital reach through carriage on Comcast to our viewers throughout Dallas/Fort Worth."

HDTV programming is available to more than half a million homes within Comcast's service area in Texas. With the addition of ABC, Comcast HD customers in the Dallas area can receive up to six services in high definition, including NBC-HD, ESPN-HD, HBO-HD, Showtime-HD, as well as enhanced wide-screen digital programming from Fox. Comcast continues to work with other leading cable and broadcast programmers to offer the most robust HDTV content lineup possible.

In addition to HDTV, customers who subscribe to Comcast Digital Cable can receive more than 250 channels, including dozens of commercial-free premium movie channels, 45 channels of commercial-free music, and an interactive on- screen guide and more.

For more information about Comcast's products and services, please call 1-800-COMCAST or visit the company's Web site at http://www.comcast.com/ .

About Comcast

Headquartered in Philadelphia, Comcast Cable is a division of Comcast Corporation, a developer, manager and operator of broadband cable networks and provider of programming content. Operating in 17 of the United States' 20 largest metropolitan areas, Comcast is one of the leading communications, media and entertainment companies in the world. Providing basic cable, Digital Cable, high-speed Internet and telephone services, Comcast is the company to look to first for the communications products and services that connect people to what's important in their lives. The company's 55,000 employees, serve more than 21 million customers. Comcast, whose regional offices are located in Irving, serves more than 500,000 customers and employs more than 1,000 people in the Dallas metroplex.

About Belo

WFAA-TV is part of Belo Corp. . Belo is one of the nation's largest media companies with a diversified group of market-leading television, newspaper, cable and interactive media assets. A Fortune 1000 company with approximately 7,800 employees and $1.4 billion in annual revenues, Belo operates news and information franchises in some of America's most dynamic markets and regions, including Texas, the Northwest, the Southwest, Rhode Island, and the Mid-Atlantic region. Based in Dallas, Belo owns 19 television stations (six in the top 16 markets) reaching 13.7 percent of U.S. television households; owns or operates nine cable news channels; and manages one television station through a local marketing agreement. Belo publishes four daily newspapers: The Dallas Morning News, The Providence Journal, The Press- Enterprise (Riverside, CA) and the Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, TX). Belo Interactive's new media businesses include 34 Web sites, several interactive alliances, and a broad range of Internet-based products. For more information, contact David Muscari, vice president/strategic alliances at 214.977.6490. Additional information, including earnings releases, is available online at http://www.belo.com/ .

Comcast

CONTACT: Angel Biasatti of Comcast, +1-972-830-3811, or cell,+1-214-213-7686, or Angel_Biasatti@cable.comcast.com ; or David Muscari, VicePresident-Strategic Alliances of WFAA-TV-DT, +1-214-977-6490, ordmuscari@wfaa.com

Web site: http://www.comcast.com/http://www.belo.com/

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