[hibs_man]

I know Centre Court and Number One court have been shown on the BBC HD channel for the last 3 years, but a few reports for this years coverage are claiming ALL the coverage will be in HD for the first time.

BBC announces HD plans for Wimbledon

I may be asking too much but could this possibly mean that the red button matches will be available on the HD channel and in glorious HD?

If not what is the significance of this report?

[stockyvillage]

I can only see the red button being available for the digital services

[mda1974]

I would think it more likely that all of the courts are being covered by HD cameras.

That would mean that the BBC could show any of the matches on the HD channel, not just Centre or No.1 courts.

[hibs_man]

Originally Posted by mda1974

I would think it more likely that all of the courts are being covered by HD cameras.

That would mean that the BBC could show any of the matches on the HD channel, not just Centre or No.1 courts.

Looks like your spot on there. Currently the Court 2 match is in HD, whereas last year it wouldnt have been.

Overall though its pretty much the same as before, ie there will only be one match at any time in HD.

Hopefully we can have HD interactive matches in the future.

[si2k2000]

I was trying to watch the Roger Federer match via the red button but just could not get used to it not being in HD. Also the sound quality was terrible with lots of popping and the commentators voice being distorted.

I have now given up and am watching Sharapova in glorious HD.

[New Bloke]

Originally Posted by si2k2000

Roger Federer...not being in HD.... sound quality was terrible...I have now given up and am watching Sharapova in glorious HD.

As good as the excuses could get

[will.duvel]

The picture has been a bit ropey for me to be honest - it seems a bit juddery at times.

Having said that, I'm just about to call Sky as I have been getting momentary pauses and picture break up on all channels over the past few days. When I checked the signal quality, the Strength on 1 & 2 were fine, as was Quality on 1 but 2 had zero quality showing

[Legendary]

It is shame no multi choice for HD matches.

Why can't they use BBC 3 and BBC 4 for Wimbledon HDTV when they are not in used before 7pm.

[choddo2006]

Originally Posted by Legendary

It is shame no multi choice for HD matches.

Why can't they use BBC 3 and BBC 4 for Wimbledon HDTV when they are not in used before 7pm.

Because they don't have anything like enough bandwidth allocated to them

[satmanbasil]

Hi m8s


Why cant they have red button choice on HD channels surely they have the knowledge how to do this ...

regards
satmanbasil

[derek500]

Originally Posted by Legendary

It is shame no multi choice for HD matches.

Why can't they use BBC 3 and BBC 4 for Wimbledon HDTV when they are not in used before 7pm.

The BBC only have one HD enabled stream, which is used for BBC HD

BBC3 and 4 streams are both SD and are used for CBBC and CBeebies during the day.

[Scapegoat]

I don't think there has been any interactive HD content on the Sky platform - Sky, Beeb etc.

In essence the red button is just access to another 'hidden' channel, and it would need Sky / BBC etc to have many more HD channels and the bandwidth associated.

Long time away from this I think.

[Stephen Neal]

The BBC currently only have capacity for one HD stream - so would need more transponder capacity for mutliple HD interactive streams.

BBC HD currenlty takes 16.5Mbs, the SD streams are nearer 2-4Mbs. That means you'd need to ditch between 4 and 8 SD services for each extra HD stream you wanted unless you found extra capacity - possibly slightly fewer if you used newer encoders and accepted lower picture quality.

The BBC announcement, as others have surmised, is to do with the BBC covering all courts in HD this year. This means any match can be shown on BBC HD - not just Centre Court and Court Number One. It also means that international broadcasters who also have rights to show Wimbledon - like NBC and ESPN - can show the matches in HD.

[Legendary]

So why can't they buy extra bandwidth with our money. We wouldn't object. How expensive it is ?

[Maxtoon]

It's also worth noting that BBC HD doesn't have a very high bitrate when compared to other HD channels !

[Martin J.]

I just popped in to poll what people thought of the picture quality?

I don't think it's impressive at all, there's some quite alarming lens distortion around the corners of the frame (look at the on-court scoreboards top left and right) and there clearly isn't enough bandwidth. The Murry match looked "peaky" too, with blown out whites and a little ringing.

Much better than in SD of course, but not the flagship production it once was.

[wednesday83]

Originally Posted by Martin J.

I just popped in to poll what people thought of the picture quality?

I don't think it's impressive at all, there's some quite alarming lens distortion around the corners of the frame (look at the on-court scoreboards top left and right) and there clearly isn't enough bandwidth. The Murry match looked "peaky" too, with blown out whites and a little ringing.

Much better than in SD of course, but not the flagship production it once was.

The coverage is very patchy. Sometimes looks very good, then at other times looks average. I know some people dont like to blame bandwith, but I also aggree theres not enough bandwith, something we have all known for a long times since the BBC reduced it (some people at the BBC just dont like to admit this). The encoders used cannott cope with any movement on the existing bandwith. I think still shots look very good, specially on the roof with the presenting team tho. Also the shots from the air look good.

The BBC should up bandwith to 20mbps for sporting events, but there appears to be a cash issue. Its a shame Eurosport dont have the rights to he footage.

[Coffin]

Originally Posted by Stephen Neal

The BBC currently only have capacity for one HD stream - so would need more transponder capacity for mutliple HD interactive streams.

I don't know all the technicalities, but I do know it's mid 2009, pay my TV license and therefore consider one HD stream from the Beeb a bit pants

[wednesday83]

More than 1 HD channel from the BBC just is not viable at the moment at all. The BBC simply dont have an interest in HD as much as they used to. There isnt enough budget for 1 HD channel never mind 2. They wont even upgrade the encoders or increase bandwith which is much needed. Clearly a cost issue.

The BBC would rather invest is little stupid toys such as I Player.

[Stephen Neal]

Originally Posted by wednesday83

More than 1 HD channel from the BBC just is not viable at the moment at all. The BBC simply dont have an interest in HD as much as they used to. There isnt enough budget for 1 HD channel never mind 2. They wont even upgrade the encoders or increase bandwith which is much needed. Clearly a cost issue.

The BBC would rather invest is little stupid toys such as I Player.

Describing iPlayer as a "stupid little toy" is a bit of a mistake. It is widely regarded as one of the most successful broadcaster streaming systems around - and is massively more popular than the ITV, C4 or Five equivalents. At NAB the US broadcasters were amazed at its popularity - and the EBU is desperately trying to work out how other European broadcasters can mirror its success.

It is getting VERY significant amounts of use. I wouldn't be surprised if shows made in HD got more viewets on the iPlayer than they did on BBC HD - though there are more iPlayer capable displays (i.e. PCs) than BBC HD capable displays (i.e. Freesat HD / Sky HD / Virgin Media HD / FTA satellite HD).

However I agree that expecting the BBC to fund more than one HD channel, when there is really not sufficient content to fully utilise the current stream is a bit much.

[ash]

Originally Posted by Stephen Neal

Describing iPlayer as a "stupid little toy" is a bit of a mistake. It is widely regarded as one of the most successful broadcaster streaming systems around - and is massively more popular than the ITV, C4 or Five equivalents. At NAB the US broadcasters were amazed at its popularity - and the EBU is desperately trying to work out how other European broadcasters can mirror its success.

It is getting VERY significant amounts of use. I wouldn't be surprised if shows made in HD got more viewets on the iPlayer than they did on BBC HD - though there are more iPlayer capable displays (i.e. PCs) than BBC HD capable displays (i.e. Freesat HD / Sky HD / Virgin Media HD / FTA satellite HD).

However I agree that expecting the BBC to fund more than one HD channel, when there is really not sufficient content to fully utilise the current stream is a bit much.

Agree, iPlayer is stellar, and the streaming service on BBC Sport works all the time for me! They just need to put live streaming on the iPhone

First time having BBC HD at home, and loving the 5.1 in today's Murray game!

[Restorer]

Originally Posted by Stephen Neal

It is getting VERY significant amounts of use. I wouldn't be surprised if shows made in HD got more viewets on the iPlayer than they did on BBC HD - though there are more iPlayer capable displays (i.e. PCs) than BBC HD capable displays (i.e. Freesat HD / Sky HD / Virgin Media HD / FTA satellite HD).

Trouble is only very high end machines can cope with the 720p streams and downloads. I get jerkiness with my 2.2ghz dual core and 8mbps connection. I gather this is mainly the fault of the rather inefficient Adobe Air decoder system the BBC have opted for with their new player .

[Turbo Tony]

I was watching the Murray match too. I thought my TV needed recalibrating. I don't know the cause, but the picture couldn't handle the bright whites and the deeper colours at the same time. As the sun set, this became more evident.

Everyone seemed to have an eerie white glow around them!

[mxs]

my viewing has been perfect!

[hibs_man]

I should have known the thread would have developed into a picture quality debate, but that's good.

When i first saw the HD pictures from Centre Court back in 2006 i always used the net as a barometer of just how great it looked, you could make out the squares in the net very distinctly. I am doing the same just watching the Querry v Cilic match and i am noticing how i can hardly make out any markings which is what you would expect in SD.

I trust Sky will be reducing the HD sub in line with the picture quality reduction that seems to happening across the board.

[derek500]

Originally Posted by hibs_man

I trust Sky will be reducing the HD sub in line with the picture quality reduction that seems to happening across the board.

Can't blame Sky for BBC HD!!! You're not paying Sky for it.

[hibs_man]

Originally Posted by derek500

Can't blame Sky for BBC HD!!! You're not paying Sky for it.

I did say across the board, meaning all channels including Skys very own!

On an unrelated issue, why do the BBC abbreviate Spanish players nationality to ESP when it should obviously be SPA?

[dcoop]

Because ESP is short for España..would be my guess.

[ash]

Originally Posted by hibs_man

On an unrelated issue, why do the BBC abbreviate Spanish players nationality to ESP when it should obviously be SPA?

That's the sporting/olympic abbreviation.
Like South Africa is RSA (Republic of SOuth Africa)

[Martin J.]

Originally Posted by hibs_man

When i first saw the HD pictures from Centre Court back in 2006 i always used the net as a barometer of just how great it looked, you could make out the squares in the net very distinctly. I am doing the same just watching the Querry v Cilic match and i am noticing how i can hardly make out any markings which is what you would expect in SD.

That's not a bitrate issue (nor the contrast problems or the edge distortion), they're all production problems as they all occur with largely static frames. The lack of bandwidth becomes apparent with panning shots.

Originally Posted by hibs_man

I trust Sky will be reducing the HD sub in line with the picture quality reduction that seems to happening across the board.

Sure, perhaps when they're responsible for the BBC's output, that'll happen.

Wimbledon clashes with Glastonbury this year too, so there's very little festival coverage on BBC HD.