There is nothing non standard about DVB-T HD with MPEG 4. It is used in France, Spain, Poland and various other countries.
The Panasonics will work with this and will work with the UK spec. The problem is that they won't do both at the same time which is a requirement by people living along both sides of the border, down much of the east coast or Ireland, and possibly in west Wales, Devon, and Cornwall. Not forgetting of course the large populations of Folkestone and Calais.
Expensive special sets are not required, the existing software just need to be written properly.
Outside of Europe, one of the countries known for using MPEG-4 over DVB-T is New Zealand, although Australia because of how long they have had HDTV broadcasts for, they use DVB-T MPEG-2 for both SD and HD broadcasts, although they have been known to use MPEG-4 for trials such as 3DTV trials.
I've not seen that but it would have been quite a turnaround for Sony to move from a $5.55 billion loss in the 2012 fiscal year and a $9.26 billion loss for Panasonic.
I think you have to drill down into the detail of the two annual returns in order to find out quite what resulted in an apparent turn around. There are several reasons why there could have been a loss turnround that year and you should remember that Sony make a lot more things besides TVs.
Examples might be a loss on the sale of its European TV design and manufacturing plants - most Sony TVs sold here are not actually made by them but by the companies that bought the factories in Spain and (I think) Hungary. Sony games machines are usually first sold at a considerable loss in the "Polaroid" strategy. Polaroid sold their instant cameras at a loss but made it up in sales of the special film. Sony made up the losses on games machines with sales of games etc (later production runs probably were at cost or a small profit). IIRC during that period Sony brought out Ericcson's share in their joint mobile phone venture.
I think you have to drill down into the detail of the two annual returns in order to find out quite what resulted in an apparent turn around. There are several reasons why there could have been a loss turnround that year and you should remember that Sony make a lot more things besides TVs.
Examples might be a loss on the sale of its European TV design and manufacturing plants - most Sony TVs sold here are not actually made by them but by the companies that bought the factories in Spain and (I think) Hungary. Sony games machines are usually first sold at a considerable loss in the "Polaroid" strategy. Polaroid sold their instant cameras at a loss but made it up in sales of the special film. Sony made up the losses on games machines with sales of games etc (later production runs probably were at cost or a small profit). IIRC during that period Sony brought out Ericcson's share in their joint mobile phone venture.
If you are looking at other reasons for the loss, there are a lot of options to go for included in the original article although it did state that the flat TV business was the main culprit.
Of course, the stronger yen, the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake, floods in Thailand and the deterioration of European market conditions also hammered the big three’s bottom line. But tabbed as the main culprit is the flat TV business – wherein all three, almost blindly, pursued bold expansion plans that ended up shrinking profits.
The situation for the year to March 2013 doesn't appear to have been any better:
It's encouraged by both governments that TV signals from one side of the island are viewable on the other. RTE is available to almost everyone in Northern Ireland via overspill or with their own Mini mux transmitting in Northern Ireland. The BBC is available almost everywhere in the Republic via overspill, Cable or Sat.
In reality, it's all one-way. Any free UK tv we get in the 'south' is just a happy accident.
Have to disagree hugely with that. Down through the years RTE was watched in the North by both sides, both for the Sports, (A live first division Match from England every Saturday was very tempting to all sides) and for other stuff such as films and TV series.
There are a good few TV shows on RTE or TG4 which aren't broadcast on any UK Freeview channel. Examples of this are True Blood and Breaking Bad which both go out on TG4.
My first real expourse to Unionist Culture was when I went to college in Northern Ireland during the early 90's. Except for a small hardcore minority Unionist Houses with reception would watch RTE when there was something good on... Obviously that was hard at times.
And from the Sunday Tribune 3rd June 2007 a comment from Ian Paisley
Paisley rarely watches TV: "There's too much dross: I don't like the bad language, immodest dress, drinking and taking the Lord's name in vain." He prefers RTE to the BBC because "it's more critical of the establishment". He accuses the BBC and broadsheet newspapers of "a huge intellectual dumbing down".
You're missing my point. I am disagreeing with your statement 'It's encouraged by both governments that TV signals from one side of the island are viewable on the other', which I understood as your saying that the UK government are actively promoting the availability of free UK tv in the republic, on a par with such as the NImux or, strategically sited ROI transmitters like Clermont Carn & Hollywell Hill.
You're missing my point. I am disagreeing with your statement 'It's encouraged by both governments that TV signals from one side of the island are viewable on the other', which I understood as your saying that the UK government are actively promoting the availability of free UK tv in the republic, on a par with such as the NImux or, strategically sited ROI transmitters like Clermont Carn & Hollywell Hill.
Okay, well in fact in 2010 an agreement was signed by both governments which.... (RTE NEWS quote)
The agreement commits the two governments to facilitating RTÉ services in Northern Ireland and BBC services in the Republic of Ireland on a free-to-air basis.
Now a few days later this was changed as the BBC isn't allowed to directly provide free services outside of the UK. Someone would have to pay carriage fees on saorview, the bbc won't, and there would be a outcry from both cable companies and sky if the Irish Government paid for it.
Having said all that, it's the policy of both governments that services are available to both sides of the island without restriction. (With of course copyright respected)
In reality anyone who wants BBC in the south already has it. If it appeared on Saorview in the morning it wouldn't really change how many watch but it would make life easier.
Well I would certainly expect anyone in the northern parts of Ireland to be able to pick up TV signals from Northern Ireland (which is part of the UK)...
All nation states and their agents make choices, those choices often make little sense. In theory the Saorview system is more advanced.
Back in the sixties RTE was broadcasting from 1962 on 625 lines, two years before the BBC and seven years before BBC 1 and ITV.
Maybe that was to do with the fact that Ireland had just started it's first ever TV broadcasts, so it made sense to use 625 lines? :rolleyes: It's a bit like a country these days which has never had digital terrestrial broadcasts before, then when they do, moving directly to DVB-T2 instead of DVB-T!
Maybe that was to do with the fact that Ireland had just started it's first ever TV broadcasts, so it made sense to use 625 lines? :rolleyes: It's a bit like a country these days which has never had digital terrestrial broadcasts before, then when they do, moving directly to DVB-T2 instead of DVB-T!
No, in fact RTE were broadcasting on 405 lines in 1961 but they decided to broadcast on 625 lines across the country because it was the more modern format. They had dual standard broadcasts up to the early 1980s. However all the main 405 transmitters were turned off in 1978.
At the time there would have been an argument to just use the UK system, but they were thinking longer term.
No, in fact RTE were broadcasting on 405 lines in 1961 but they decided to broadcast on 625 lines across the country because it was the more modern format. They had dual standard broadcasts up to the early 1980s. However all the main 405 transmitters were turned off in 1978.
At the time there would have been an argument to just use the UK system, but they were thinking longer term.
Sorry?, how was that thinking "long term", and how did it differ from the UK? - it looks pretty well directly following the UK, just a while behind.
Comments
I think you have to drill down into the detail of the two annual returns in order to find out quite what resulted in an apparent turn around. There are several reasons why there could have been a loss turnround that year and you should remember that Sony make a lot more things besides TVs.
Examples might be a loss on the sale of its European TV design and manufacturing plants - most Sony TVs sold here are not actually made by them but by the companies that bought the factories in Spain and (I think) Hungary. Sony games machines are usually first sold at a considerable loss in the "Polaroid" strategy. Polaroid sold their instant cameras at a loss but made it up in sales of the special film. Sony made up the losses on games machines with sales of games etc (later production runs probably were at cost or a small profit). IIRC during that period Sony brought out Ericcson's share in their joint mobile phone venture.
If you are looking at other reasons for the loss, there are a lot of options to go for included in the original article although it did state that the flat TV business was the main culprit.
The situation for the year to March 2013 doesn't appear to have been any better:
http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/japanese-brands-tv-woes-201211022342.htm
It's encouraged by both governments that TV signals from one side of the island are viewable on the other. RTE is available to almost everyone in Northern Ireland via overspill or with their own Mini mux transmitting in Northern Ireland. The BBC is available almost everywhere in the Republic via overspill, Cable or Sat.
In reality, it's all one-way. Any free UK tv we get in the 'south' is just a happy accident.
Have to disagree hugely with that. Down through the years RTE was watched in the North by both sides, both for the Sports, (A live first division Match from England every Saturday was very tempting to all sides) and for other stuff such as films and TV series.
There are a good few TV shows on RTE or TG4 which aren't broadcast on any UK Freeview channel. Examples of this are True Blood and Breaking Bad which both go out on TG4.
My first real expourse to Unionist Culture was when I went to college in Northern Ireland during the early 90's. Except for a small hardcore minority Unionist Houses with reception would watch RTE when there was something good on... Obviously that was hard at times.
And from the Sunday Tribune 3rd June 2007 a comment from Ian Paisley
Paisley rarely watches TV: "There's too much dross: I don't like the bad language, immodest dress, drinking and taking the Lord's name in vain." He prefers RTE to the BBC because "it's more critical of the establishment". He accuses the BBC and broadsheet newspapers of "a huge intellectual dumbing down".
Okay, well in fact in 2010 an agreement was signed by both governments which.... (RTE NEWS quote)
The agreement commits the two governments to facilitating RTÉ services in Northern Ireland and BBC services in the Republic of Ireland on a free-to-air basis.
Now a few days later this was changed as the BBC isn't allowed to directly provide free services outside of the UK. Someone would have to pay carriage fees on saorview, the bbc won't, and there would be a outcry from both cable companies and sky if the Irish Government paid for it.
Having said all that, it's the policy of both governments that services are available to both sides of the island without restriction. (With of course copyright respected)
In reality anyone who wants BBC in the south already has it. If it appeared on Saorview in the morning it wouldn't really change how many watch but it would make life easier.
Well I would certainly expect anyone in the northern parts of Ireland to be able to pick up TV signals from Northern Ireland (which is part of the UK)...
All nation states and their agents make choices, those choices often make little sense. In theory the Saorview system is more advanced.
Back in the sixties RTE was broadcasting from 1962 on 625 lines, two years before the BBC and seven years before BBC 1 and ITV.
No, in fact RTE were broadcasting on 405 lines in 1961 but they decided to broadcast on 625 lines across the country because it was the more modern format. They had dual standard broadcasts up to the early 1980s. However all the main 405 transmitters were turned off in 1978.
At the time there would have been an argument to just use the UK system, but they were thinking longer term.
Sorry?, how was that thinking "long term", and how did it differ from the UK? - it looks pretty well directly following the UK, just a while behind.