Peter Fincham, ITV's director of television, called the figures a testament to "the enduring popularity of high-quality television content broadcast free-to-air to mass audiences".

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Stray-Gundersen worked for the Norwegian Olympic Committee from 1997-2002, sealing bedrooms of the country's top Nordic athletes and adjusting the oxygen and nitrogen content of the air, so they could sleep in a simulated high altitude environment (he was the scientist who developed the concept of living at high altitude to increase hemoglobin levels).

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Satellite and conventional over-the-air broadcasting will remain the primary high-def program sources until cable operators decide to carry high-def content and Hollywood delivers prerecorded HD cassettes or discs.

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