COMPANY TOWN : AT&T; to Carry Fox’s Digital Shows on Cable

AT&T; Corp., soon to be the largest U.S. cable television company, said it will carry digital TV signals from Fox Entertainment Group’s 22 stations on its cable systems across the U.S. for the next 10 years.

The agreement covers AT&T;’s 10 million-plus subscribers and Fox’s stations, which reach 40% of U.S. homes with TVs. The companies also agreed to work to provide Fox’s high-resolution, or HDTV, programming to cable customers. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

AT&T; reached a similar agreement with General Electric Co.’s NBC in June. There had been concern that cable operators would resist carrying digital signals because it would force them to give up valuable channel space on their systems. About 70% of U.S. homes receive their TV signals over cable.

Most TV viewers don’t yet have access to HDTV because sets cost thousands of dollars. That’s expected to change as the cost of the sets falls and more cable operators agree to carry digital signals.