An article on HDTV in Australia<br /><br /> <br /><br />High Definition Digital Television is the most contentious of the digital TV inclusions. It has been at the centre of outrageous claims and much of the misleading information about digital TV. HDTV is extremely bandwidth hungry and has meant the bandwidth remains under the control of the existing networks rather than be auctioned off to potential competitors. <br /><br />It would be an unwise thing to rush into in Australia however, because it has clearly been a commercial failure in the USA and the government here has given no guarantees it will continue. No one would want to spend $20,000 or so for a unit complying to the government's original specifications, or even well below $10,000 for a lower specified unit.<br /><br />If HDTV was a horse, they would shoot it. It is frightening to think that at one stage HDTV was to be the sole form of Digital TV in Australia (a policy “set in stone” according to Senator Alston only a few short years ago). This would have meant billions of dollars in public assets (spectrum space) being tied up servicing a handful of Australian households (when instead it could have been sold to the highest bidder) and the vast majority of Australians not enjoying any benefit from digital broadcast at all. To give you some idea, if the sales on the public record of integrated HDTV sets in the USA to consumers were matched per capita in Australia, it would have meant only a very few Australian homes would have opted for the technology in the first year. However given HDTV’s current problems overseas and the fact that the Australian system is unique, even these projections may be too optimistic. (These US figures have since increased, however after two and a half years of HDTV’ availability only around 1 in 2000 TVs sold in the USA could receive and display it. ) <br /><br />If Australia bought HDTV on the same basis the numbers of viewers would still be negligible.<br /><br />The government has mandated 20 hours a week of HDTV programming by 2003, but already some in the commercial networks are voicing the opinion that such a figure is not viable, and advertisers are vocal and on record as saying they are not interested in producing for the format. Don’t be surprised if it is dropped.<br />Phil <img border="0" title="" alt="[Smile]" src="images/icons/default/smile.gif" />

I suppose what's really sad is that Australia's communication minister probally couldn't install a battery in a car let alone run digital TV !!

Also isn't it ironic that you can spend up to 20K on a HDTV, but have to hook up your DVD Player on analog video. Why don't DVD players have a SDI output (Serial Digital)..<br /><br />Because the stupid MPAA fears copying.. FOrget the fact you can rip a dvd in under 6 minutes on a P4 3.0 Ghz machine.<br /><br />I for one would NEVER spend so much money to watch the news and a few limited programs in HDTV and not be able to get true high definition DVD playback.<br /><br />Wake up and get a grip on the real world manufacturers!

Its funny we talk about this because we have a incompetent minister that wouldn't know shit from clay.<br />What I cannot understand about our politicians is its always the wrong person for the wrong job, this is the way our politicians should be selected for there port folio.<br />The Minister of education :should come from a teaching background or maybe a Head Master!.<br />The Minister of Defence : should come from a Military Background.<br />The Minister of communication :should come from the Electronic and Communications background.<br />and so on, and so on, this way you would end up with politician with there correct background, and the same should go for there back bencher's This is why we have so many fucks ups in this country, its the blind leading the blind.<br />Phil <img border="0" title="" alt="[Confused]" src="images/icons/default/confused.gif" />