MEMBER PROFILE
Hill high on HD
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Dec 5, 2006 - 8:57:00 AM

By Ken Kerschbaumer

Is HD the road the financial Nirvana? That was the focus of the HD World Conference and Exposition keynote address from David Hill, DirecTV Entertainment president and Fox Sports TV Group chairman, kicked off the HD World Conference and Exposition.

“At DirecTV we’ve definitely drunk the HD Kool-Aid,” he said. “In the middle of 2007 we’ll have more HD capacity than any other satellite or cable operator in the world. And we don’t believe it’s a passing fad.”

While DirecTV looks to drive revenues with HD tiers and by pulling away cable subscribers hungry for more HD services HD is even more important for cable networks. Why? Because cable ad revenues have fallen back to a zero increase as the ability for cable to deliver to narrow audiences is being confronted with online services that can give advertisers more value.

“It’s a vital application to the profitable application of the TV business,” he said. “How secure is the financial profitability of the TV industry right now? Broadband is cutting into a revenue stream that until 18 months ago was exclusively TVs.”

HD, however, is an answer to fight back. “About 50 percent of U.S. consumers plan to buy an HD set as their next set and in four years it will reach a penetration rate of 83 percent,” he added. “Our surveys show that 69 percent look for HD when they switch on the set and 70 percent have increased weekly viewing because of HD content.”

Even more surprising? Fourteen percent of viewers would rather watch an HD commercial than an SD program.

“We can do things now we only dreamed of 10 or 20 years ago,” he said. “And the interesting thing about all of the advancements [over many of those years is that they] were transparent to the viewers. Ask them if they know the difference between film, tape and servers?”

HD, however, like the move from black-and-white to color, is changing that. For Fox Sports, however, the move to HD took it down the road to 480p. “We figured that 480p was such a huge leap from 525-line interlace that viewers would fall in love with it,” he said. The 2002 Super Bowl broadcast, he added, was a watershed as it was soup-to-nuts 480p, meaning that the few HD viewers would receive the same exact coverage as NTSC viewers.

Hill said the network felt it had made a statement about the viability of 480p but, after numerous tests, working in progressive 720p was a superior format. In 2005 the network again broadcast the Super Bowl and gave viewers a 720p experience.

“I don’t think there is any doubt that HD is a major milestone in our industry,” he said. “The TV has been with us so long it’s about as exciting as the toaster, fridge, and oven. But HD re-energizes the TV experience.”

The industry makes a mistake by just thinking of HD as better pictures and audio. Instead, he said, it gives viewers a window to the world.

With respect to 4:3 and 16:9 and the need to serve both viewers he mentioned the John Ford rule: keep the stagecoach in the middle of the frame. “If you do that you’ll keep both sets of viewers happy.” He said. “I have a lot of cranky directors but a lot of happy viewers.”

“If there is a threat to the future of TV it’s the fiduciary duty of every executive to take any step necessary,” he said. “Go HD or simply become lost in the mix. Being the last guy to switch from analog to HD is like being the last one to switch from black-and-white to color.”


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