A open letter to NBC regarding their coverage of the 2004 Athens Olympics in HD

[geekygizmo]

This is a open letter to NBC regarding their coverage of the 2004 Athens Olympics in HD.

While I applaud the 24 hour coverage in HDTV I am surprised at the lack of consideration of your HD viewers by denying us real-time and primetime coverage. The decision to separate your HD (DTV) channels and present your prime time shows and coverage only to older ANALOG TV systems is in my opinion counter productive.

I now sit at primetime watching the closing ceremonies in low quality standard definition and you (NBC) even have the gull to play a "Presented in HDTV" promo, Sure HDTV of the closing ceremonies will be shown at 4am and 8am est., real good family time, and to beat all, it can't even be recorded except with extremely pricey equipment out of my (and 99.9% of your HDTV audience's) reach.

If you had added the expanded coverage on a separate channel the HD experience would have been a bonus and worth paying extra for the equipment but the way you (NBC) did it having "HD only" was a disadvantage.

"rant"
Since I have invested in HD equipment I feel like a second-class person, Technical professionalism is at a 1950's level, scene switching from shows to commercials are raw at best and clichés are everywhere, now I can't even watch what the rest of the world is watching because I stepped up to the plate and upgraded.
"/rant"

Regards,
Jmayes
(geekygizmo)

 

[wase4711]

I've read in several places that the MAIN reason the HD coverage of these games was so lame was that the NBC local analog channels and station managers were more worried about lost revenues/ratings they felt they would "suffer" if the HD coverage caused folks like us to to tune into the HD feed insted of the lousy analog feed..
Well, in one way they are correct; I am so disappointed in the way they handled the HD coverage that I am going to BOYCOTT all their advertisers, and watch ABC and CBS as much as possible from now on..
If any NBC exec's happen to read this forum, congratulations; your greed and silly protectionist business mentality has BACKFIRED on you..

Oh, and by the way, after the insulting SONY commercials all HD viewers were tortured with the first several days of the Olympics, I will NEVER BUY ANOTHER SONY product either..
Somehow, I think most HD viewers feel exactly the way I do..Hope CBS or ABC gets the next olympics, cause NBC BLEW IT big time.....

 

[gutter]

I know what you mean but sorry, NBC has the 2008 China Olympics and beyond. I wish I could have even seen the delayed HD broadcast but was not the privileged list.

 

[fredfa]

NBC has the rights to all Olympics through 2012 (winter and summer) and has said that beginning in Turin in 2006, the network will show the same HD/SD feed.
Presumably there will still be lots of extra SD content on the NBC/U cable channels, so starting in 2006 we'll have thread after thread of people complaining the minor sports on those cable channels aren't being presented in HD.