Supposedly a disagreement of what package ESPNU is in is why we don't have ESPNU HD. ESPN wants it in a lower level package and D* wants to keep it in the sports package.
Well, they seem open to moving other National sports channels out of the Sports Pack (NBA TV & CBSCS), so this "premium" package is definitely losing some value. Why not move out ESPNU and maybe one or two more, rename the Sports Pack to the "RSN Pack" or something like that, and lower the price a bit, maybe a fixed price ~$8. I know D* would rather still be able to price it as a premium tier, but they are the ones moving channels out of it and into base packages.