Maybe it’s just me, but if I were a TV network executive with a whole HD channel at my disposal, I’d make sure to fill it with HD content. After all, that ‘HD’ in the channel’s name does mean ‘High Definition’, not standard definition.
What I would not do is broadcast the exact same SD content on the HD channel, even if it was the Australian Open. But that’s exactly what Channel 7 are doing, starting today. Why? Because they hate you.Well, that and the fact that they don’t actually make any money off their HD channel with advertising, nor does it improve their ratings.
Considering how hard the FTA channels are pushing the upcoming FreeView service and its 15 channels (including the three HD channels), this is just another reason I’ll be sticking with Foxtel.
hugh
Monday, January 19, 2009 at 4:54 PMmy channel 60 (hd prime its 7 for the bush) is black not even a sd picture. Why wont they do it right? and dont get me started on the less than consitant southern cross ten HD and there demonstration channel
adamskee
Monday, January 19, 2009 at 9:40 PMAs normal channel 7 hasn’t the faintest idea of how to cover a sporting event, we only have to look back at the Olympic Games to see horrible coverage that was more like a extended promo for their “B” grade celebrities
Daniel
Monday, January 19, 2009 at 11:12 PMTo add insult in injury they arent even letting Fox Sports show the games in HD either.. sucks..
Tim Rosser
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 1:38 AMI’m not going to go all out on the “they’re idiots” side of things but it is a bit stupid. Especially if there are those of us who, say, don’t want to watch the tennis and only the tennis during January. Perhaps we want to catch some ‘How I Met Your Mother’. In hindsight there isn’t much point to this comment besides saying how much the tennis annoys me (I like to watch some of it but this is too much!)
Nick
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 8:46 AMIs it just me or do Channel 9′s “HD” cricket broadcasts look more like SD as well? I’ve just moved back to Australia from Canada and the HD channels here are really poor (especially in Canberra).
Nelson
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 10:55 AMIt is very poor. That and 7′s ability to run commercials into the start of the next game after the 2-game break. Yesterday we missed the first 3 points. Often the commentators will be so busy discussing non-game topics that a shot-of-the-match will pass by without comment. Yes a waste of the licence to air Australian tennis.
drew
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 11:17 AMI would be interested to see if this might in fact be a sponsorship issue – if they didn’t receive enough money for production to warrant a full HD production, but instead run with a cheaper SD production…
Is this signs of what’s to come if companies are not willing to pay for advertising to help fund these productions…
darkjedi
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 11:22 AMIt’s the Olympics all over again!
Why does Australian free to air hate us so much?
Daniel
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 11:24 AMNick – its just you. Check out Nine HD vs Nine SD on a proper HD panel and the differences are immediate. Sharper graphics, brighter and more defined colours and better detail. Heck, I even watch it through the Foxtel HD service (which is compressed) and the differences between Foxtel HD Ch 9 HD and my aerial Ch 9 SD are immediate.
Gerry
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 12:09 PMAll of the tv channels and the government (under Helen Coonan) have f#&%$’d up digital television in this country in so many ways.
They should all be shot.
Chumplunt
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 12:51 PMNine has only just started showing the cricket in true HD. They didn’t have the HD cameras at the ground previously. In fact, a few of them were damaged the night before the first game due to a storm that hit.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Seven didn’t even have the true HD cameras at the tennis. Just the SD cameras. Hence why the broadcast is all in SD
Simon
Thursday, January 22, 2009 at 9:33 PMThis is the same channel that shows Heroes in SD and schedules Lost to finish at 12am on a week night. Nothing would surprise me from them.
Thomas
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:26 PMI’m just disgusted by Channel 7′s broadcasting of the Australian Open, Running adds into games is disgusting and the commentators are the worst i’ve ever listened to, i actually MUTE the TV and lsiten to music instead of listeing to them advertisting 7′s horrible new shows. This is THE WORST BROADCAST EVER.
Darren
Sunday, January 23, 2011 at 9:07 PMChannel 7 are not the only ones guilty of this. Channel 9 have not broadcast a single game, to my knowledge, of the cricket in HD. Yet over on FoxSports they are showing both in HD, and it looks brilliant. When you switch back, it looks like there is a major problem with the picture because SD looks so bad ona big screen TV.