(and am awaiting a reply to an EM sent to Sony at the weekend)
Completely off topic but it seems strange for someone who spends time and effort formatting their links in a specific way to then use "EM" as, presumably, short for "email".
Anyway Sony have replied, after the preamble, as follows ....
Having looked into this matter further for you, I can confirm that the switch from 1080i and 1080p is currently in the testing phase. The reason that this issue is occurring is due to the fact that, as part of the testing process, the transmission is constantly being changed.
This will only be a temporary phenomenon, but it remain, regretfully, beyond Sony's control.
I've forwarded this to the BBC for confirmation and further comment.
Having looked into this matter further for you, I can confirm that the switch from 1080i and 1080p is currently in the testing phase. The reason that this issue is occurring is due to the fact that, as part of the testing process, the transmission is constantly being changed.
This will only be a temporary phenomenon, but it remain, regretfully, beyond Sony's control.
It is just me who thinks that sounds like "our TV's can't cope with being switched between 1080i and 1080p, and we can't be bothered to fix it. The problem will go away once we've convinced the BBC to stop doing it."?
Anyway Sony have replied, after the preamble, as follows ....
Having looked into this matter further for you, I can confirm that the switch from 1080i and 1080p is currently in the testing phase. The reason that this issue is occurring is due to the fact that, as part of the testing process, the transmission is constantly being changed.
This will only be a temporary phenomenon, but it remain, regretfully, beyond Sony's control.
I've forwarded this to the BBC for confirmation and further comment.
That sounds like a bobbins answer to me.
The whole point of the system the BBC are using is to allow the encoder to make the choice - so it could conceivably alternate at every GOP boundary. It isn't going to be made less granular than this I wouldn't have thought - as that would require encoders to be linked to playout systems - which can't always be possible in a distributed architecture (thinking BBC One Nations etc.).
Danielle Nagler has replied to me this afternoon ....
I have passed on your comments - and those you enclosed from Sony - to those responsible for managing the encoder software upgrade which has triggered this issue and which, as the response from Sony indicates, includes a switch from 1080i to 1080p. This switch has only just taken place - however it is not, as Sony has suggested, a "test", nor are there tests being carried out by us which are causing the disturbance that you are observing. We are aware that a limited number of Sony receivers - including your own - are responding to the changes we have made by generating some level of audio disturbance. We have been in contact with Sony for some time about these issues, and are sending them additional test material so that they can investigate the problems with their receivers. We are keen to ensure that all HD equipment from all manufacturers delivers a good quality of BBC HD services to viewers, and therefore we are working with Sony to try to ensure that this problem is resolved as quickly as possible.
I apologise in the meantime that changes that are improving the quality of service from BBC HD to viewers are resulting in these problems for you,
Isn't this change just going to mean they're going to broadcast even more 25Hz programming instead of 50Hz, claiming that 25hz is 'better' (because it's now "1080p" (even though only p25 not p50)? While other people at the BBC are giving talks/writing papers on why higher frame/Hz rates are better.