I used to consider the technology of television to be amazing -- even magical.
But then I became an HDTV "early adopter" back in 1998, and a decidedly different perspective began to take root. Sure, there were lots of early operational teething pains and the relative lack of programming in the first few years of the transition to HDTV truly tested my patience. But at that point, it was perfectly understandable, because widespread consumer acceptance of digital television and HDTV was anything but a sure thing.
But that was then -- and this is 2007.
Now I wonder if broadcasters have any understanding at all of the opportunity they are fumbling away with their poor handling of the transition to digital television and HDTV.
The cable industry scored a decisive political victory Tuesday night when Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin had to dump a draconian digital TV plan that cable vowed to contest in court, perhaps rupturing the harmony needed by the industry-government effort to shift the nation to all-digital broadcast TV in early 2009 without a massive consumer rebellion.
After an 11-hour delay to the start of its monthly meeting, the FCC voted 5-0 at about 10 p.m. to require cable systems to distribute local TV stations that demand carriage in both analog and digital formats for a three-year period starting Feb. 18, 2009. That’s the day after all 1,756 full-power TV stations must turn off their analog signals and rely exclusively on their digital feeds.
This somewhat arcane but important ruling applies mostly to smaller, independent local TV stations that might otherwise be omitted from local cable line-ups in favor of more popular non-broadcast programming. Analog "must carry" has existed as de facto law of the land, with a Supreme Court ruling backing it up, since the late 1990s. Now it is being extended to cover the potential fallout that might occur in the transition from analog to digital terrestrial broadcasting.
It's worth noting that the ruling on dual "must carry" does not appear to have any obvious impact on recent squabbles between the cable industry and broadcasters arising from broadcaster demands that cable operators pay retransmission fees for the right to deliver local digital stations to its subscribers.
Under "must carry" provisions, broadcasters have the option to declare for "must carry," in which case the cable system is legally required to include that station in its basic tier. However, those stations that do not declare for "must carry" have the option of entering into negotiations to be paid for carriage of their station signals. But if the two sides are unable to agree to terms, the cable system has no obligation to carry the station.
As a result, last night's FCC ruling is unlikely to slow the trend toward local stations demanding payment for carriage of digital signals.
But in addition to the "must carry" implications here, the FCC ruling has an important, and likely beneficial impact, for HD picture quality:
Lobbying pressure from the National Cable & Telecommunications Association forced Martin to yield not only on perpetual dual carriage but also on a second priority: Requiring cable systems to transmit "all content bits" in a digital TV signal, thereby eliminating the use of signal compression and statistical multiplexing that husband bandwidth.
First, California banned smoking in bars. Then, New York City mandated trans fat-free restaurants. Now, the UK oppposition party wants to ban plasma TVs.
When I was growing up, I used to think having a nanny would be cool. I was wrong.
The Conservatives will propose banning plasma screens and other energy-guzzling electrical goods in a report to be unveiled next week.
The proposals target white goods like fridges and freezers, as well as TVs, personal computers and DVD players that use too much energy or operate on stand-by.
The ideas come from a Conservative group set up by David Cameron to develop policies to protect the environment and although the measures to make household electrical appliances more energy efficient are not binding on Mr Cameron, they are thought likely to be warmly received by the Tory leader.
Warmly received? Mr. Cameron better watch his ass, or he'll be next victim of the carbon footprint stampede.
The annual CEDIA trade show is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated events on the calendars of home video and audio lovers in the US. This year's 4-day event officially kicked into gear on Thursday in Denver, but already it's clear that ringleaders Sony and Toshiba plan to do everything they can to make the Blu-ray versus HD DVD format war the centerpiece of CEDIA Expo 2007.
Sony got things rolling early in the pre-show proceedings on Wednesday by claiming that over the past 9 weeks, sales of dedicated Blu-ray players had passed sales of dedicated players for the Toshiba-backed HD DVD format.
This was interesting news, primarily because Toshiba, since the launch of the HD DVD format, had focused mostly on sales of standalone players, while Sony mostly relied on sales of the PlayStation 3 game console with its integrated Blu-ray disc player. In addition, Sony and its Blu-ray partners focused on maintaining high prices for early adopter buyers, while Toshiba has been much more aggressive on the price of single-purpose HD DVD players, although it too worked the game console angle with an budget-priced add-on HD DVD player for Microsoft Xbox 360 owners.
No one was surprised on Thursday when Toshiba countered the Sony claims by presenting statistics that indicate that Toshiba HD DVD players command 55% market share, with Sony holding just 42% of the market. That doesn't really refute the Sony claims, but it does provide some helpful context.
But as it turns out, probably the most interesting and relevant HD DVD vs Blu-ray factoid to emerge so far from CEDIA is that disc sales are not following the trend for hardware sales. Even as sales of players -- both in standalone and game console form -- are increasing, sales of Blu-ray and HD DVD discs are on a downtrend that resembles a freefall.
There are several potential pitfalls that can undermine HD picture quality, but there's little doubt that one of the most annoying -- and unfortunately most common -- problems for full enjoyment of HD programming is cable and satellite subscription services that reduce picture resolution or transmission bandwidth (or both).
It's safe to say that nothing gets visitors to Internet-based home theater forums more agitated, more quickly than a discussion of HD picture quality that has been purposely compromised. And while there's a general recognition that all pay TV services throttle back picture quality to some degree in order to ration precious bandwidth for other purposes, DirecTV has come to be seen as Public Enemy No. 1 when it comes to this practice.
But now it appears that DirecTV's HD picture quality may be on the comeback trail, as online reports have surfaced that the company has quietly restored the Discovery HD Theater channel to full 1920 x 1080 quality.
It seems that no one at Sony can keep a secret -- either that or the Japanese electronics giant is adopting modified guerrilla marketing tactics in its battle against game makers Microsoft and Nintendo.
The recent price reduction for Sony's 60GB PlayStation3 model was one of the worst-managed corporate announcements in recent memory, with everyone who was anyone at all signaling the price drop for nearly a month before Sony dropped out of serial-denial mode and made the official announcement.
Now it appears that Sony is at it again, as reported by the Engadget web site:
It's been rumored before, now Sony's marketing manager for Computer Entertainment in New Zealand has apparently, and likely pre-emptively, unveiled Sony's intentions to turn the PS3 into a digital video recorder.
Sony's Warwick Light is quoted in an interview with New Zealand's The Press as saying, "We're also hoping next year - about the same time that Freeview launches its terrestrial broadcasting service (expected to be in March) - to release a digital tuner for the PS3, turning it into a programmable TV recorder."
An article in today's TV Predictions newsletter reports on an eMarketer study that finds that consumers have an overwhelming preference for low prices when asked to make a choice between price and picture quality.
Sixty-two percent of Americans say they would buy a High-Definition TV if there were "significant price drops." That's according to a new study from eMarketer, as reported by Advertising Age.
In the study, only 21 percent of consumers said they would buy a new HDTV for "improved picture and audio quality."
Unfortunately, this says much about my historical track record for "timing the market." Could there be a better time to be launching a web site focused on promoting the factors that are important to a high quality home viewing experience?
According to a story in the Morning Bridge newsletter, a study conducted by US public television stations finds that a significant percentage of the households that receive television solely over the air are unaware of the pending move to digital broadcasting and the corresponding shutdown of the analog system. And these viewers are largely clueless about what they need to do to continue receiving local TV broadcasts after February 17, 2009.
The conclusion of the public broadcasters? Government needs to spend more money to educate the public about the transition, suggesting it will require a "Y2K"-style awareness campaign.
My conclusion? Broadcasters -- both public and commercial -- need to take some initiative before looking for government handouts.
Sam Runco is widely credited for creating the term "home theater," and he actually owns the trademark on that bit of verbiage, at least in the state of California.
So then, even though it sounds like Sam will continue to be involved in the Runco business after the sale closes, it is still a bit sad to hear the news that he's selling the company he founded 20 years ago.
Commercial and high-end home theater display manufacturer Planar Systems Wednesday acquired elite home theater display manufacturer Runco International for $36.8 million in cash, Scott Hicks, Planar home theater display group president said.
Runco, a privately held company, has been positioned as the market share leader in the ultra-high end home theater display business, and has expanded its distribution in recent years through the acquisition and development of the Vidikron brand.
Sony today announced immediate availability of a PlayStation 3 firmware upgrade that addresses a number of issues in how the popular game console handles standard-definition DVD and Blu-ray Disc playback.
From a press release issued by Sony Computer Entertainment America:
SCEA is enhancing the PS3 user experience by enabling PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games to be upscaled to HD resolution, up to 1080p. Classic games as well as recently released titles can now be enjoyed like never before.
And PS3 system now has the capability to upscale DVD videos to HD quality (up to 1080p), a feature typically limited to top-of-the-line DVD players. Upscaling games requires an HDMI or component AV cable, while upscaling DVD-ROM (including DVD Video content) requires an HDMI cable and HDMI compatible TV set.
DirecTV has filed suit against Comcast for a Comcast advertising campaign that claims viewers prefer Comcast HD picture quality over the HD picture quality available from DirecTV and DISH Network.
In the ad, Comcast cites a Frank N. Magid Associates study conducted in March 2007 that said respondents were shown high-def signals from Comcast, DIRECTV and EchoStar. and asked to rate each screen.
According to the Magid study, Comcast was the preferred choice of the three.
In a nine-page suit, DIRECTV asks the U.S. District Court in Northern District of Illinois to stop Comcast from "engaging in any further false advertising and promotion."
I detest these sorts of lawsuits, but in this case I think they could be a good sign for anyone who cares about the long-term direction of HD picture quality via cable and satellite.
