High-definition television (HDTV) technology is being prepped for deployment across Europe in the coming years. TV Execs at the International Broadcasting Convention discussed the issue and believe that Europe is ready for the new technology. HDTV is already in use in 5 major countries (Japan, US, Canada, Australia, South Korea). HDTV enabled TV's have higher image quality, yet require shows to be filmed on special cameras. Currently, America leads the world with 40 HDTV enabled channels.
Ghislain Lescuyer of Thomson told the BBC that "we really think that 2004/2005 will be the year of high definition".
Current estimates suggest that as many as 4.5m households in Europe could be using HDTV enabled devices by 2008. In the UK, the BBC will be outputting all of it's content in HDTV form by 2010. Although many broadcasters are keen to switch over sooner, the technology can't be launched in many areas until existing analogue signals are switched off / switched onto digital.
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