Scottish broadcaster STV let it be known at its recent annual meeting that it fully intends to launch at least some of its planned HD services in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cups matches starting later this spring in South Africa.
Its initial HD service—coming in time for the international soccer tourney and subsequent sports and other programming—will first become available to Scottish viewers via digital terrestrial and cable. (BSkyB already covers Scotland with DBS.)
STV's chairman said at the annual meeting that the broadcaster's investment in HD is a result of television's "improved advertising market" which is projected to climb more than 20 percent this month in April and 23 percent in May (and mid-teen growth in June).
STV is looking at World Cup coverage in HD to be a venue highly coveted by a wide array of advertisers—and coming at a time best-suited for kicking off a full summer and fall of other HD programming.
