High-def TV not ready for Net's prime time

(continued from previous page)

Few companies are more interested in improving Net video quality than Major League Baseball. The league has been a trendsetter in distributing live events over the Net. Critics showered praise on MLB's technicians for handling the live feeds of this year's NCAA basketball tournament games to more than 268,000 viewers.

Justin Shaffer, MLB.com's chief architect, is more optimistic than many insiders regarding when the Net may be ready for HD.

"Things are really starting to come around," Shaffer said. "Clearly there needs to be upgrades in bandwidth, but there's definitely reason to be encouraged."

He said several companies are working on technology that would allow computers in close proximity to each other to share data. Instead of streaming the same images to multiple people, such technology would send the information once to a hub computer and then use that to distribute it to others.

HD doesn't present as much of a problem to sites such as do CinemaNow and Movielink, which recently unveiled plans to offer downloadable movie services. Apple Computer and Amazon.com are also exploring the possibility of distributing films over the Net, according to a report this month in the New York Times.

Akimbo Systems, which distributes video content over the Web, downloads material that doesn't have to be watched live. Users who leave their computer running can get feeds from Akimbo regardless of any traffic jams on the Web. Once the film or TV content is finished downloading, the viewing will be excellent because the information is already on the user's hard drive.

"You have to get away from the streaming model to distribute high definition," said Josh Goldman, CEO of Akimbo Systems. "It's best to do it as a download."

But even with downloads, there's a big size difference. The movie trailer for "Walk the Line," available on Apple's QuickTime site, for example, has a standard and high-definition offering. The file size for standard definition is 36 megabytes and the high definition is 93 megabytes. The HD version packs more than twice the amount of information than the standard.

Will lower quality stymie the nascent Internet video market?

"If HD were to hit, it wouldn't really affect YouTube," said Julie Supan, the company's spokeswoman. "Our service focuses on short format, fast delivery and lower-quality video content uploaded from devices. Our service is more about the entertainment quality of video content versus the 'resolution' of the content."

Josh Martin, an IDC analyst, echoed Supan's comments. He said sites like Ifilm, Atom Entertainment and YouTube draw audiences because of the unique entertainment they offer. Martin uses as an example a clip that has crisscrossed the Internet recently of an autistic high-school basketball player who became a national star by hitting six three-point shots in a game.

"Is that story less compelling because it's not high definition?" Martin said. "I don't think so."

[g4e]

Overview/comparison of 40 online video sites

Comparing Youtube and its competitors:

http://www.mustseeblog.com/?p=68

[g4e]

Overview/comparison of 40 online video sites

Comparing Youtube and its competitors:

http://www.mustseeblog.com/?p=68

[alansegal]

HD Streaming is available today

This news story does not hold true. There are several companies already doing HD quality streaming video over the Internet.

EdgeStream has developed software that enables operators to offer HD streaming - www.edgestream.com

This company seems to be is in stealth mode still.

[J. Blow]

No they don't

The last mile connection is the one that matters and no broadband service in the US today offers enough bandwidth. You really need a minimum of 5mbps and more like 6-9. That is you are using advanced codecs like 264 or VC1 too and not MPEG2.

In addition it is a load on the machine so you have to have very fast hardware to decode.

Right now this isn't possible.

[paulsecic]

HDTV

You're dreaming. Good HD on the net is 5 to 8 years off.

[alansegal]

HD Streaming is available today

This news story does not hold true. There are several companies already doing HD quality streaming video over the Internet.

EdgeStream has developed software that enables operators to offer HD streaming - www.edgestream.com

This company seems to be is in stealth mode still.

[J. Blow]

No they don't

The last mile connection is the one that matters and no broadband service in the US today offers enough bandwidth. You really need a minimum of 5mbps and more like 6-9. That is you are using advanced codecs like 264 or VC1 too and not MPEG2.

In addition it is a load on the machine so you have to have very fast hardware to decode.

Right now this isn't possible.

[paulsecic]

HDTV

You're dreaming. Good HD on the net is 5 to 8 years off.

[graffitivideos.com]

standard definition video clips

It seems premature to start talking about HD streaming video when almost all standard video on the Internet sucks. I would just love to see great standard definition video clips.

[alansegal]

HD demos

well go check out http://www.edgestream.com/corp/demos.htm# for SD and DVD quality streaming

and also
http://www.edgestream.com/corp/demos-HD.htm
for HD streaming

[graffitivideos.com]

standard definition video clips

It seems premature to start talking about HD streaming video when almost all standard video on the Internet sucks. I would just love to see great standard definition video clips.

[alansegal]

HD demos

well go check out http://www.edgestream.com/corp/demos.htm# for SD and DVD quality streaming

and also
http://www.edgestream.com/corp/demos-HD.htm
for HD streaming

[turnherematt]

Not shooting HD

"Fans of video upload sites shouldn't expect to enjoy clips of amateur singers, bikini-clad dancing girls or mouse-eating centipedes streamed in high definition anytime soon."

Well, it's hard to argue with that. The folks who are making these clips are more likely to be shooting them with a cell phone than an HD camera. And thank God. The Internet would be brought to its knees if everything coming and going from YouTube was HD.

[turnherematt]

Not shooting HD

"Fans of video upload sites shouldn't expect to enjoy clips of amateur singers, bikini-clad dancing girls or mouse-eating centipedes streamed in high definition anytime soon."

Well, it's hard to argue with that. The folks who are making these clips are more likely to be shooting them with a cell phone than an HD camera. And thank God. The Internet would be brought to its knees if everything coming and going from YouTube was HD.

[th8]

HD movies are larger than noted

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[th8]

HD movies are larger than noted

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[th8]

HD movies are larger than noted

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[sandonet]

You are correct

Thanks for this Tom. You make a great point. The clip on Quicktime is a movie trailer. We used that example, however, to just show the differences in sizes between standard definition and high def files. Thanks for bringing that to our attention.

[th8]

HD movies are larger than noted

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[sandonet]

You are correct

Thanks for this Tom. You make a great point. The clip on Quicktime is a movie trailer. We used that example, however, to just show the differences in sizes between standard definition and high def files. Thanks for bringing that to our attention.

[th8]

HD downloads are larger

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[th8]

HD downloads are larger

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[th8]

HD downloads are large

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[th8]

HD downloads are large

Your article implies that "Walk the Line" on Apple's Quicktime site is
an entire movie download which it is NOT. It is only a 1:53 minute
trailer for the movie. The trailer is 112 mb in HD resolution. If the
entire movie were available as an HD download it would weigh in at
8-10 GB. A download that size could easily take 20 hrs to
download using todays average connection speeds.

[200mbpsBPL]

got hi-speed, Symmetrical Broadband over Power Line upload/download speed?

BPL claimed to offer alternative to VERY EXPENSIVE Fiber-to-the -home connections which could support HI-DEFINITION TV streaming via online !!!

read more: http://broadbandoverpowerlines.blogspot.com/

[200mbpsBPL]

got hi-speed, Symmetrical Broadband over Power Line upload/download speed?

read more from: http://broadbandoverpowerlines.blogspot.com/2006/03/networking-over-power-lines-coming.html

re: http://www.ds2.es/

[Jackson Cracker]

"claimed to offer", yes

But too bad they haven't delivered.

[Earl Benser]

At the moment.....

.... power line technology is just smoke without the mirrors. Many
claims, no actual delivery. Somebody needs to accomplish
something before I would consider believing the claims.

[200mbpsBPL]

DS2 demonstrated HDTV streaming via Powerlines

fyi: see the pics of multiple TV connected to a BPL modem via electric power outlets

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=48963883

[200mbpsBPL]

got hi-speed, Symmetrical Broadband over Power Line upload/download speed?

BPL claimed to offer alternative to VERY EXPENSIVE Fiber-to-the -home connections which could support HI-DEFINITION TV streaming via online !!!

read more: http://broadbandoverpowerlines.blogspot.com/

[200mbpsBPL]

got hi-speed, Symmetrical Broadband over Power Line upload/download speed?

read more from: http://broadbandoverpowerlines.blogspot.com/2006/03/networking-over-power-lines-coming.html

re: http://www.ds2.es/

[Jackson Cracker]

"claimed to offer", yes

But too bad they haven't delivered.

[Earl Benser]

At the moment.....

.... power line technology is just smoke without the mirrors. Many
claims, no actual delivery. Somebody needs to accomplish
something before I would consider believing the claims.

[200mbpsBPL]

DS2 demonstrated HDTV streaming via Powerlines

fyi: see the pics of multiple TV connected to a BPL modem via electric power outlets

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=48963883

[jdbwar07]

The real reason

why this is such an issue in the US is because we're being screwed by the telecom companies. We have nearly the worst internet access in the developed world, which is why we're kind of a laughinstock since we developed the internet. Places like South Korea, for example, have 1000 mbps connections.

In the 90s the government gave the telecoms about $200 billion in exchange for them rewiring america so we had super-fast fiber optic connections. However they kept the money and didn't keep their promise. If they did, we probably would be able to use the internet for video, and watch HD whenever we wanted to. Computers also would be a lot faster as technology would have had to improve to process HD video.

To learn more about how the Bells and verizon stole the country's digital future, please visit www.teletruth.org .

[jdbwar07]

The real reason

why this is such an issue in the US is because we're being screwed by the telecom companies. We have nearly the worst internet access in the developed world, which is why we're kind of a laughinstock since we developed the internet. Places like South Korea, for example, have 1000 mbps connections.

In the 90s the government gave the telecoms about $200 billion in exchange for them rewiring america so we had super-fast fiber optic connections. However they kept the money and didn't keep their promise. If they did, we probably would be able to use the internet for video, and watch HD whenever we wanted to. Computers also would be a lot faster as technology would have had to improve to process HD video.

To learn more about how the Bells and verizon stole the country's digital future, please visit www.teletruth.org .