As I understand it, Fox Sports 1 (FS1) is requiring that cable systems carry the channel as part of their expanded basic lineup, and cannot move it to a 'sports' tier that requires an extra fee. (I have a friend who manages a municipal cable t-v system, so that is what he told me.) On my system, FS1 is replacing Speed. Speed was part of a sports tier, but it's being moved to expanded basic. I already had speed as part of the HD package. (on my system, you have to pay extra for the HD package, and I also pay extra for an HD-capable DVR.).
As far as what FS1 will provide, I hope I'm wrong, but the promos give me the sense that they're going to glitz it up - more "hip" and "edgy." Shoot, they're putting Randy Moss on one of their NFL shows. I quit watching Sportscenter because I couldn't stand the anchors acting like stand-up comics, and shouting their latest wacky catch-phrase every 10 minutes.