AT&T Inc. and Japan Network Group Inc. (JNG) announced a distribution agreement to deliver TV Japan's Japanese-language programming as part of the AT&T U-verse TVSM channel lineup.

"We are proud to offer an array of content to best serve our diverse customer base," said Dan York, head of programming of AT&T Operations, Inc. "TV Japan's in-language programming is a great addition to our robust and compelling television service."

"TV Japan will offer AT&T U-verse customers quality news and entertainment programs that showcase the rich Japanese culture," said Susumu Tanimura, president and CEO of Japan Network Group Inc. "We are excited to make the latest in Japanese entertainment part of the AT&T U-verse experience and to further expand our customer reach."

AT&T U-verse TV is delivered by Project Lightspeed, the company's initiative to expand the fiber-optics network deeper into neighborhoods to deliver U-verse TV, AT&T Yahoo!® High Speed Internet U-verse Enabled and, in the future, Voice over IP services. Through its subsidiaries, AT&T expects to reach nearly 19 million households by the end of 2008 as part of its initial deployment, using fiber-to-the-node (FTTN) and fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) technologies.

Financial and other terms of the agreement were not disclosed.