Cablevision to stop selling analog TV by year-end

New York cable operator Cablevision Systems Corp said on Thursday it will stop selling analog television packages by the end of 2009 as it moves to become an all-digital service. The company said just five percent of its 3.1 million video customers currently receive its analog expanded basic package and these customers will continue to receive the limited service without any required action. But the cable company, which has the highest digital service penetration of any major U.S. cable operator, will no longer market analog TV packages to customers. One advantage of going all-digital for cable companies is that it frees up capacity on an operator's system. One analog TV channel takes up the capacity for up to eight to ten digital channels.