Sony's great news for analog input only HDTV's!

[Electone]

QUOTE: "Analog component output for 1080i has been included so people who own HD-capable televisions without HDMI can enjoy the Blu-ray Disc experience."

I think it's great that Sony decided to include an analog component video HD output for people that purchased a HDTV before HDMI and DVI came out. This means we don't have to ditch our tvs to enjoy HD discs!

 

[jonnythan]

Pssst....

Hey, kid.....

Come on, try it.

The first hit's free.

 

[Pyrrho]

QUOTE: "Analog component output for 1080i has been included so people who own HD-capable televisions without HDMI can enjoy the Blu-ray Disc experience."

I think it's great that Sony decided to include an analog component video HD output for people that purchased a HDTV before HDMI and DVI came out. This means we don't have to ditch our tvs to enjoy HD discs!

But they could still put in a system such that there can be an optional code on a disc that could tell the player not to output analog HD, and downconvert for the output for those discs. Then all of the movie companies can put the code on their discs, leaving one unable to have true HD without a compatible digital input on one's TV. Have they said that they are not including something like that in their players? After all, with DVDs, they typically put in optional code to prevent some players from being able to play the disc (region codes), so why expect that with better formats the companies won't be even more paranoid and protective of their materials?

 

[MDS]

The code is the Image Constraint Token (ICT) and Sony has said that they won't honor that code if it is present. We'll just have to see if they follow through or eventually bend to pressure from the movie studios.

 

[Pyrrho]

The code is the Image Constraint Token (ICT) and Sony has said that they won't honor that code if it is present. We'll just have to see if they follow through or eventually bend to pressure from the movie studios.

Well, that is very interesting. I was just guessing based upon past behavior of electronics manufacturers and the movie industry, which is why I did not have a name for their evil ways.

Sony has not released it yet, and many things, once released, are different from what was promised. But if Sony does goes through with it, the movie industry will either sue them into submission, or if that fails, they will simply release everything on HD DVD and stop releasing Blu-ray discs altogether or willfully degrade the picture on all Blu-ray releases so that no one gets a picture as good as the format is capable of delivering (if they are clever, they might be able to encode the picture data in such a way that it is difficult to get a good picture when converting to analog, but is fine when kept digital).

Don't worry; the movie industry will come up with a way to make our lives less pleasant. After all, they have always been good at that in the past. Isn't that their raison d'être?