And if digital wasn't enough...

It’s been a while since I started a new topic, but I found something that might deserve it.

HDTV. The big new flashy expensive satellite format. It stands for High Definition Television and at the moment it only carries 2 Channels encrypted in Irdeto. The service provider of these channels is called Euro1080 and it launched on the first day of January.

This is a receiver to receive the channels and it also comes with a ten year access card. Unfortunately, it costs 500 pounds so you’d have to have high hopes for it’s success to spend the money. Personally, I’d wait for it to get a bit more successful before I’d indulge in buying into an unknown two channel platform.
http://www.sateuropa.co.uk/product_overview.asp?id=620&catid=14&subcat=29

Here’s the website for Euro1080.
http://www.euro1080.com/

I’m not sure if there are any other receivers or suppliers of HDTV but I’ll have a look around and see if there’s any evidence to determine if there will be any future in the platform.

This reminds me of the launch of analogue satellite in England during the eighties. It will either flop or be a huge success, we will soon see.

HDTV is already pretty big in the US, and (I think) Australia. Apparantly Sky are launching a HDTV platform and/or a HDTV dedicated channel in either 2005 or 6.

Australia have only just started promoting a "Brand new amazing quality Digital Television. Upgrade now!" How could HDTV get quite popular in a country where technology is five years behind us? Its just *beyond* me...

This really reminds me of BSB/Sky in the eighties.

Euro1080 try to revoloutionize television with there brand spanking new sercvice. Sky eat them, and make it their own then force everyone to upgrade.

Well of course there is the argument that the US went for HDTV because their current system was so low resolution whereas ours is still good.

The BBC are planning to bring HDTV to the UK (a annoucement that happened around the same time all the big bosses bought plasma screens, hmm) but are working on their own open-source codec called Dirac to do so.

Hopefully the space in the analogue terrestrial spectrum will be used for this but knowing our dear govt it'll be sold to more moron phone companies for 4G.