Do you expect high-def now?
By Matt Burns 
posted Apr 3rd 2006 2:24PM
posted Apr 3rd 2006 2:24PM
Are
we are at the point that we expect high definition for major events now? Case in point: yesterdays NBA Sunday game of the Pistons vs the Suns on ABC. Major even but it was not in high-def? (At least for me) I do not have an answer on why major events are not in HD yet but rather something to think about. Do you remember one or two years ago when we were surprised that the event was in HD. Now that surprise is when it isn't. This is a good thing folks as the penetration of HD is rising.
YES, I expect nationally televised sporting events (like the NBA on ABC or TNT) to be in high-def. I have DirecTV, and switched over to the "high def" feed for ABC and while the picture was letterboxed on either side, it was clearly not in HD. Maybe just a technical error yesterday?
The problem may be in how one defines "major". You may define it as a good matchup in your favorite sport, but the networks define it based on expected ratings. The events with the best ratings tend to get the HD treatment.
Yes, I expect major sporting events and big events like the Oscars to be in HD.
I will not watch SD programing now! The networks should figure out we don't want to go back to Black & White and Mono sound. They still don't get it. Networks, do your HD build out, we are not going to get in a time machine and have all this HD go away, its here and time to embrace it!
I was surely surprised yesterday when the game wasn't in high def. I have Dish Network and I kept on switching between the regular feed, and the HD feed trying to figure out what was up.
Its funny how my TV watching habits have changed since getting HD. No more UPN and WB (Dish Network doesn't HD them)
I ranted about this exact topic Saturday in the HDTV Programming forum over on AVSForum. Right now I only get PBS and ABC in HD. Obviously I don't expect PBS to have sports in HD, but ABC consistently drops the ball (no pun intended) with HD sports programming (or lack thereof). If FOX can cover Nascar in HD, why can't ABC cover Indy car in HD? I would be much more inclined to watch a show if it were in HD. I would have even watched the MLS soccer if it had been in HD on ABC the other day.
I stopped watcing that game because it wasn't in HD. Its just not the same...
I think it has to do with ratings/markets like someone else said. Although to many people (myself included as I was actually at the game in person) but I guess ABC didn't see it that way.
I was thinking about the National Nightly News and how none of the big three networks put it in HD. I normally watch it time delay by my series 1 TiVo, so I'm used to it looking degraded, but tonight I was around and watched it directly from my OTA Digital Tuner. The local news before and after was in HD, but the national news looked as bad as when my tivo compresses it.
All sports should be in HD. I actually e-mailed my local ABC station last year during this same time when the NBA was winding down. I was surfing through the HD channels and saw women's volleyball, some fishing show and NASCAR all in HD. Then I came on ABC's coverage of a playoff caliber NBA game in SD. I was thouroughly annoyed. Get into the 21st century ABC!