BBC to show World Cup in HDTV
We are all getting ready for the launch of Sky HDTV which is going to be launched in May, and we have just released the Sky HD pricing today.
The BBC have been fairly quiet on the channels that they were going to broadcast in HDTV until today. It has been reported that they will be showing the World Cup games and the Wimbledon coverage in HDTV. They will start this trial of HDTV in Mid May which is expected to last between 6 and 12 months for viewers who have the right set top box and subscription with their satellite or cable operators. This sounds like great news, but Roger Mosey who is the director of Sport for the BBC has said that it will only be available to around 200 homes in the London area. Now this is a real shame as the World Cup is the perfect platform for the BBC to reach a huge audience. So which homes will be allowed access to the World Cup in HDTV? Will the key people from the BBC happen to live at the chosen addresses??
Postscript: 3rd April: Looks like now the BBC HD trial will be available for anyone with the correct set top box on a subscription free basis. The BBC will be running a few hours of HDTV a day of certain BBC1 and BBC2 programmes.
The first World Cup match to be shown in HDTV will be the Germany v Costa Rica game on the 9th June. After the World Cup other programs in the trail will include the impressive series of Planet Earth which will really benefit from the increase in quality that HDTV gives.
There may also be another issue that affects the release of HDTV and SkyHD TV as there are warnings that there could be a shortage of decoder chips that are vital for the production of the set top boxes. The manufacturers will need to be able to keep up with the demand to ensure that there are sufficient numbers available.