Let viewers know programming is in HD, advises HD guru
Aug 21, 2007 9:29 AM
Joe Kane is on a mission to help TV viewers get the most out of their HDTV sets.
The former Eastman Kodak employee, HD studio consultant and consumer HD educator certainly has the right background to get the job done. Having worked on SMPTE committees that helped set the standards for HD, Kane “knows enough about it to know that if you follow the system configuration for high definition, it’s a spectacular system,” he says.
In October, Kane, who is billed in promotional material as an HD guru, will release “Digital Video Essentials: HD Basics” on HD-DVD and Blu-ray disc, a compilation of easy-to-use calibration tests and setup instructions to help consumers maximize the performance of their HDTV sets.
With the nation fast approaching the DTV transition deadline and the TV industry about to embark on a greater viewer education effort, it seemed wise to talk to Kane to learn his view about where TV viewers are today in their understanding of the digital transition and HDTV and how broadcasters can be most effective with their educational efforts.
HD Technology Update: The NAB, broadcasters and other interested parties inside and out of the government will begin a push to educate viewers about the impending DTV transition. Polls show a widespread lack of knowledge about the transition. What is your perspective on the general level of knowledge about the upcoming transition among consumers, given that you are focused on helping consumers get the most out of their HDTVs?
Joe Kane: I’m not sure the consumers know a lot about the transition. I’ve certainly talked a lot about it to basic consumers and found that very few of them understand what’s going on.
It’s usually only the enthusiasts — the people who are really interested in video — who are making any real attempt to get HD today. The average consumer may think they have it because they have a widescreen TV set, but until they actually experience it, they don’t have any idea of what they are actually looking at.
HD Technology Update: Do you have any advice for the broadcast industry as it embarks on an education program?
Joe Kane: I certainly think broadcasters need to make an effort to let people know that programming is truly HD. There has to be a way of identifying that a given program is an HD signal and letting viewers know they are watching it.
In other words, on an SD channel, they are going to have to take away identifications of HD, and on the HD channel, they are going to have to put something in that literally says, “You’re watching high definition.”
I think they have to find a way of differentiating their HD channel from their SD channel to make it easy for people to understand which one they are watching.
HD Technology Update: Right, because there are reports of consumers seeing a message at the bottom on the screen saying, “This program is available in HD,” on the SD version of the program and watching that instead of the HD version on their HDTVs.
Joe Kane: That’s correct, so I think the broadcasters have to make an effort on the HD channel to say, “You are watching the HD channel.” On the SD channel, they might say something to the effect, “You need to switch to the HD channel to see this program in HD.”
HD Technology Update: Early HD adopters tended to turn to over-the-air broadcast for the HDTV programming because so little existed elsewhere. Now, HD
programming is widely available on cable, satellite and even IPTV. What will happen in over-the-air HD households as the non-broadcast HD availability grows?
Joe Kane: I think that’s going to be content driven. In other words, I record a lot of off-the-air material for watching because I happen to like watching things when I want to watch them, but the majority of my HD viewing is with the networks because they offer content I want to see. Quite often, I look at programs because they are in HD and have discovered a lot of interesting shows because they are in HD, and I am going to give them a chance.
I actually think the networks can compete on content.
HD Technology Update: With over-the-air delivery in the form of owned and affiliated television stations?
Joe Kane: First of all, the broadcaster has to compete to get the consumer’s attention from the other HD services, but, more important in making the decision on whether you receive the network from cable or over the air, sometimes getting it through cable is the only alternative.
It has certainly been my experience that over the air looks much better than any of the cable or satellite systems I’ve seen. When we’ve made comparisons of the image quality obtained from the signal, in almost every case, the over the air has been better than from any alternate source.
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