Fans of the NFL, "American Idol" and "24" may soon be able to enjoy the Fox shows in high definition.

Fox affiliate KHON 2 and Oceanic Time Warner Cable are finalizing a deal that will make available KHON's HD programming, including Sunday Fox National Football League games.

"That's great," said Manoa resident Kevin Lung, a fan of "American Idol." "There are not enough channels. That's the problem. We just need more channels."

Oceanic currently offers 11 channels in HDTV; with KHON, that would grow to 12.

The number of high-definition subscribers in Hawai'i is small but growing. About 25,000, or roughly 6 percent, of Oceanic Cable's 400,000 Hawai'i customers get HDTV services, the company said.

KHON would join NBC affiliate KHNL 8 and ABC affiliate KITV 4 in having their HD programming carried on cable, leaving CBS affiliate KGMB 9 as the last major local network without HD on cable.

HDTV "is growing, and that's where the future is and where the future of broadcasting is," said KHON general manager Joe McNamara.

Norman Santos, Oceanic's vice president for operations, said KHON HD should be available to cable subscribers by this weekend, provided his company can complete an agreement with KHON.

Nationally, the number of households watching HD programming is rising sharply, according to Scottsdale, Ariz.-based research firm In-Stat.

MARKET GROWING

The number of households with HDTV service is projected to grow from 15 million in mid-2006 to 20.3 million at the end of 2006.

However, there is still a disconnect between HD services and the penetration of HDTV sets. Only one-third of U.S. households with HD-capable TV sets are actually using them to watch HD programming, In-Stat reported.

HD-capable TV sets hooked up to digital or standard cable without HD service will not provide the sharpness available on HDTV.

To get HD programming via Oceanic cable, customers must buy an HD-capable television and pay an additional $6.95 a month on top of their current digital cable bill.

The special HD service, known as the HD Pak, now includes up to 11 channels, such as HDNet, HDNet Movies, ESPN HD, TNT HD, and Discovery HD.

As part of Oceanic's plan to carry Fox HD programming, Oceanic likely will add the new CW Network to its lineup. KHON recently became the Hawai'i affiliate for the CW Network, which is jointly owned by CBS and Time Warner and carries shows such as "Gilmore Girls."

COMPENSATION AN ISSUE

One hurdle that prevented local network affiliates' HD programs from being carried on Oceanic was the stations wanting to be compensated for providing the cable company with added HD programming. Oceanic Cable, which does not pay local TV stations for rights to offer their standard-definition channels, doesn't want to pay for HD programming, either.

McNamara said his station offered Oceanic KHON in HD in exchange for Oceanic adding the new CW Network. The new channel, which is called Hawaii's CW, gives KHON broader market exposure and cross-promotional opportunities, McNamara said.

The CW Network's prime-time lineup includes "America's Top Model," "Smallville" and "All of Us." KHON plans to also offer Hawai'i-originated programming on the new network, McNamara said. McNamara and Oceanic's Santos said yesterday they are not sure whether the CW Network would be available as part of Oceanic's basic or digital cable channel package.

As for KGMB, negotiations between the station and Oceanic on HD programming have yet to yield an agreement.

Reach Sean Hao at shao@honoluluadvertiser.com.