CES: LG Partners With ESPN to Offer HD Mobile Video

New Spectrum smartphone from LG on the Verizon network will include the ESPN ScoreCenter App offering an exclusive HD feed

By George Winslow -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/9/2012 12:32:18 PM

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LG is launching launched a new LTE smartphone that will give Verizon customers exclusive access to HD video on ESPN's popular ScoreCenter app. The companies are billing the agreement as a first for HD video on smartphones.

"For the first time sports will be viewable at 720p on a mobile device," noted Michael Vale, senior VP and general manager of ESPN Mobile during the LG press conference in Las Vegas. "Fans will finally be able to see sports the way they were meant to be in HD."

ESPN's ScoreCenter app that comes pre-loaded on the phone gives users access to ScoreCenter stats, images and videos in 720p HD.

The Spectrum phone will launch in the Verizon wireless network on Jan. 19 and will be priced at $199 with a two year contract.

Spectrum is also the first smartphone for Verizon Wireless to feature a 4.5-inch True HD In-Plane Switching (IPS) display, the same display technology used in premium LG HD televisions.

The screen technology supports 1280 x 720 resolution. Its 500-nit display luminance and Real-Stripe RGB pixels offer users clear viewing in direct sunlight and improved color rendering.

The phone comes loaded with Android 2.3 Gingerbread but LG says an Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade available the first half of 2012.

The phone also supports Dolby Digital Plus, which allows users to stream up to 7.1 channels of surround sound through home entertainment systems, and has a Netflix app pre-loaded.