Actually, obie_fl, the AACS spec (adopted by both camps) allows setting of a digital flag that forces downconversion over component outs to 540p, and while it's an option for the content owners, it means that owners of component-only TVs will have to beware of every piece of software they buy. I doubt highly that such info will be clearly marked on the packaging, which makes this a big piece of suck for those folks. While the hole won't be closed, it won't be all the way open, either.

I'm well aware of the AACS spec and agree it is evil, but this has nothing to do with HDMI/HDCP. The press release I saw made it look like some of the studios are backpedalling on the flag. Fear of a class action lawsuit?
Here\'s a press release from Universal.

Obie's got a good point - HDMI itself doesn't automatically bring with it AACS. It does bring HDCP (as does DVI in most cases), which has been at the root of some problems caused by manufacturers not properly implementing it (leading to hardware that can't achieve the HDCP handshake consistently), but that's not so much HDCP's fault as it is the manufacturer's fault.

Of course, HDMI does suffer some guilt by association in many people's minds thanks to the flag - and many of us continue to be less than wholly reassured by the news that Sony and others are electing not to "flip the switch" with that flag for initial software releases. There's also some uncertainty about Warner's HD-DVD titles - all three of the first discs include some footnotes on the back about audio and video output that have been interpreted to mean that those titles will have the flag enabled when they ship in two weeks.

Say What?

Ritz is referring to the clever little scam - I mean clock - thread, not this thread. His comment wouldn't make much sense if you hadn't delved into the twilight zone that is the CLC thread .

Life! Do you hear me? Give my creation....LIIIIIIFE!!!

[This one's going to take a few pitchforks and buzzsaws before it goes down again.]

Not to go back a whole 24-hours on the thread, and perhaps inadvertantly resuscitate it, but, I think Gonk's on to something here.

First is the bitrate we all can, or are likely to get, from our service providers. Even between various regions of the same cable provider the quality differs. OnDemand HD might work as a more inexpensive alternative to BD or HDDVD for some who don't want or can't afford to adopt either, but there's no guarantee of quality (but as others have suggested, J6P doesn't care so much about quality anyway). But on the physical media, the bitrate will likely be no lower than the highest bitrate we'd ever get from a service provider. And who knows if the OnDemand provider would pass along the hi-res audio signals, or the standard signals?

Second is infrastructure. With OnDemand, if the feature isn't offered at all by your provider, then what do you do? At least with hardware purchases, anyone anywhere can upgrade as long as the hardware exists and the content is available *somewhere.* I have a friend that lives less than 5 miles from me, and his neighborhood has cable service of a whopping 20 channels, *none* of them digital. Yet in my neighborhood I could get the HD Locals from my cable provider (but I'm currently "enjoying" HD Lite from DirecTV instead)

Third is content availability. Until such a time comes that your OnDemand provider has a catalog as large (or larger than) Netflix's, we'll be limited to what they offer. So if I have a hankering to watch "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World" in HD but Adelphia OnDemand doesn't offer it because "Harold and Kumar" is featured that week, at least I'll be able to turn to the disk in my CaseLogic disc-holder or Netflix it. This, of course, is assuming a down-the-road scenario when both services are up and running and there is plenty of available content on both. Don't know why I chose Mad Mad World... probably because I rented it last weekend.

In all likelihood, once I decide on a format I want to try, if/when OnDemand HD becomes available in my area, I'll treat it as I do now with my Netflix account vs. PPV-HD from D* vs. whimsical trips to the local Blockbuster. I'll participate in all three. "Madagascar" on D* PPV-HD? Hmm... ok, I'll Tivo that and remove it from my Netflix queue. My fiancee wants to watch "Must Love Dogs" tonight instead of "King Kong"? Ok let's head over to Blockbuster. etc., etc. I see myself seeing a program in the OnDemand library that I care less about a/v quality (like a throwaway romantic comedy), so for less $$$ I might get that. But for more critical viewing or to ensure the highest a/v quality by my subjective preferences, making sure I get the physical media either through rental or purchase.

Whew! Sorry I rambled on so long!

Rick

Neither did your original statement I responded to, regardless of the overall topic. No harm intended. The flag itself is there, and as long as it is those with older HDTVs are waiting for the other shoe to drop. Any studio can change their position at any time once the format launches.

I do agree with you on your position on HDMI, for that matter. While the standards aren't mature enough for the new formats, it's certainly not the fault of the HDMI founders that the HD format camps are launching their product before the delivery medium is ready for them. IMO, HDMI is the best thing to happen to the CE world, allowing full A/V communication with a single cable. The octopus is dying, folks. I wonder if Monster saw this coming...

HDMI should be a great trick once it quits being a moving target. Personally, I wouldn't have minded separate audio and video runs if each could be a single cable since it would allow folks to keep audio and video processing separate if they wanted to, but if we see a paradigm shift toward home theater gear like the Anthem D2 (which based on some AVS reports has finally started landing in dealers' hands and making its way to consumers) - where the processor is both an audio processor and a video processor - then a single-cable solution like HDMI would begin to make much more sense than I originally thought it would when I heard of it a few years ago.

Greg - I think we are in agreement.

gonk - It is the D2 that got me to thinking about all this again. Then there is the AVM-40 which I still haven't figured out if it just switches like the 990 or if it does in fact process HDMI audio. What it boils down to for me is do I sell my standalone video processor and get an all-in-one solution like the D2 or AVM-50 or wait for a Pre/Pro that processes just the audio and keep the VP. I have to admit the all-in-one solution is getting pretty attractive.