Add Universal to the list of
studios that won't downsample content for owners of non-HDMI HD sets. The company follows Sony and several others in
announcing its decision not to use the Image Constraint Token to force owners of older HD sets to watch their films at
540p instead of the discs' native resolution. The decision mainly affects owners of older analog HD sets, and shows
that, at least as far as the studios are concerned, it's important to show some willingness to meet consumers
(especially early adopters) half way in order to convince them to upgrade their gear to HD. Of course, Universal and
the others are under no obligation to maintain this position indefinitely, so we won't be surprised to see ICT
implemented across-the-board in a few years, after the format wars are over and we're all hooked on our new players.
Add Universal to the list of
studios that won't downsample content for owners of non-HDMI HD sets. The company follows Sony and several others in
announcing its decision not to use the Image Constraint Token to force owners of older HD sets to watch their films at
540p instead of the discs' native resolution. The decision mainly affects owners of older analog HD sets, and shows
that, at least as far as the studios are concerned, it's important to show some willingness to meet consumers
(especially early adopters) half way in order to convince them to upgrade their gear to HD. Of course, Universal and
the others are under no obligation to maintain this position indefinitely, so we won't be surprised to see ICT
implemented across-the-board in a few years, after the format wars are over and we're all hooked on our new players.