BT Vision has HD in its sights
PC Pro caught up with Richard Griffiths, Director of Technology Strategy and Development at BT Vision, about BT's plans to move into high definition TV.
HD is 'on the roadmap' according to Griffiths, stating that the only reason it's delayed is because of signing the live sports deal.
"The roll out of HD is dependent on a range of factors. The technical side is something we know we can do. But we need to decide when it's financially viable, as these are massive files and cost a lot to distribute. It depends on when the market is ready. We already have the set-top box and back-end infrastructure for HD,' said Griffiths. 'The set top box already reads HD signals in 720p or 1080i resolutions and on the back there is an HDMI convertor, plus output options in the menu structure," he told the site.
The problem sounds as if it will be the 'last mile' - with wildly fluctuating speeds during peak and off-peak hours. This could raise the possibility of pre-ordering HD Video on Demand, for example. Streaming HD will likely be out of the question until their 21st Century Network rolls out - sometime in 2008.
It's an interesting read.
Related stories: BT Vision and HD: you might have to wait | BT Vision launches: is it ready for HD? | What's BT Vision made of? Basic specs | BT Vision: TV by broadband coming soon
