Oh noes! Merely months after Freeview execs were celebrating the surprising uptick in Freeview HD users, in flies word that bandwidth is already becoming an issue. You see, Freeview was initially launched as a "satellite only service using MPEG-2 video compression software," while the HD terrestrial component uses MPEG-4. Transponder space on the Optus D1 satellite is "rapidly being used up, and any further expansion of data bandwidth would require Freeview broadcasters to purchase more space from Optus." If the old MPEG-2 system was suddenly canned and replaced with MPEG-4, every last satellite Freeview user would be forced to buy a new set-top-box. We shouldn't have to explain the glaringly obvious problem with that scenario. Thus, the only stop-gap solution is to simulcast the signals, which obviously requires oodles of bandwidth. Unfortunately, broadcasters are gun-shy about dropping even more cash to expand the available space without assurance of a good return on their original investment, so as of now, expansion plans wait while bigwigs figure out where to get more funding.

New England cable customers better get used to the digital cable box, as both RCN and Comcast made moves in the last week to shrink analog lineups with an eye towards eliminating them entirely in the future, making room for more HD. Comcast says its HD stations in Western Massachusetts will go from 30 to 50 by the end of the year, plus more VOD options, while analog customers can expect to have their channels halved within the next two years. Meanwhile RCN kicked off project Analog Crush on July 4 to go all digital, planning to double its current 40 HD channels and increase to more than 100. Dedham is first on the chopping block, while other Boston-area residences will go digital throughout the rest of the year. Got a TV still connected to analog? Check out the links below to find out when you'll be moving to digital or losing service entirely.

Read - RCN
Read - Comcast

With scads of cable providers slowly but surely converting markets and delivering channels via switched digital video, we reckoned now was an excellent time to dust off the terminology dictionary and dig in deeper. Fittingly, Jarad agreed:

"I've seen that lots of markets are being switched over to SDV lately, and I've noticed CableCARD users are generally upset whenever this happens. Why is that? I thought SDV was supposed to free up space so that more high-definition channels could be distributed on the current network?"

If you've suddenly found yourself wondering the same, head on past the break for the low-down.

We already heard a chorus of boos from angry Red Sox / A's fans that missed some or all of the opening day of Major League Baseball, and now it seems the satcaster has disappointed fans of two other teams. Today's tilt between the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox isn't being broadcast via DirecTV on SportsTime Ohio HD as part of the Extra Innings package due to "bandwidth constraints." According to STO, DTV customers shouldn't have any issues seeing games for the rest of the season on the carrier, but the purported overload of sporting events has seemingly left no room for this one. Check the notice in full below.

[Thanks, Dayton Guy]

If you thought Comcast's alleged data throttling caused a ruckus, get a load of this. Reportedly, Time Warner Cable (partly owned by Time Warner, parent company of AOL, which owns Engadget) is gearing up to trial "consumption-based billing with subscribers in Beaumont, Texas later this year," which it hopes will "reduce congestion of its network by a minority of consumers who pay the same monthly fee as light users." According to a company spokesman, just five-percent of TWC customers suck up "more than half" of the bandwidth, but such a billing scheme could have some very nasty consequences. It's no secret that fetching television from the 'net is becoming entirely more mainstream, and with Apple pushing out "HD" rentals through its Apple TV, streaming video becoming more viable and Netflix freeing up its Watch Instantly feature, even consumers not considered lords of P2P could be hit with unexpected fees. 'Course, no prices have been divulged just yet, but seriously, does this not reek of paying for mobile time by the minute during the early 90s? Talk about taking two steps back.

[Via The New York Times, image courtesy of JupiterImages]

Like every other cable operator, Cox Communications is looking for more bandwidth. Cox has already brought 70% of its customer base up to the 1GHz mark, and is upgrading the rest of its network up to the same bar. It's all part of the company's 2010 plan, which has some 200 SD (meh) and 100 HD (now we're talking!) channels as a goal. Good times ahead for their internet customers as well, with a boost in both the up and down directions to the tune of 25- and 4-Mbps, respectively. Add in a reduction in the number of analog channels clogging up the pipe and Cox is planning on bringing its node size from 650 to 250 homes, putting them within striking distance of the SDV "magic number."

[Via Connected Home 2 Go]

The biggest challenge content providers face today is bandwidth. Their customers are demanding more HD, but their network is tapped out. There's no silver bullet, but there are multiple small solutions that all add up. SDV or Switched Digital Video, is one of those and promises to free up to 50% of the utilized bandwidth by only sending the channels that're being watched rather than all the channels, all the time. Unfortunately there's a catch, not only is SDV currently incompatible with 3rd party CableCARD hosts, but to really see the benefits, cable has to reduce the number of subscribers per node. Current service groups are around 1000, but to really take advantage of SDV, the ratio between channels and subscribers needs to be closer to 1:1; so they'd have to deploy four times as many nodes to get there. Currently providers are just doing trials with SDV, but we can expect to see it widespread in 2008. Lets just hope they get that Tuning Resolver thingy ready by then.

We know, it was a year ago yesterday that we had this very same conversation, but apparently, cable companies aren't heeding the advice of analysts. According to yet another study, this time by ABI Research, "cable providers will soon be faced with a serious bandwidth crunch" as more and more individuals look to online gaming, video-on-demand, and IPTV for enjoying their precious moments of leisure. Compounding the problem is the growing demand for more HD channels in the lineup, and considering that the satellite operators are already raising the bar, cable carriers can only play dumb for so much longer. Stan Schatt, VP and research director for ABI Research, was quoted as saying that "digital switching is key" to releasing some of the strain on current infrastructures, and while we aren't ones to believe that the influx of online TV delivery will debilitate the internet (or cable providers), something seemingly has to give -- and soon.

[Via Slashdot]

Same story, different continent. The compression bug has seemingly struck again, and this time its aggravating those Down Under who'd like to enjoy Seven Network's 1080i programming in all of its high-definition glory. After just recently flipping the switch to broadcast content in HD, a sect of Australians have already begun to grumble over the "relatively low amount of bandwidth the network has allocated to the high-definition channel." Of course, it should be noted that "most" viewers have seen no reason to get bent out of shape, but for those relaxing in Oz, what say ye on the Seven situation?

We already know how fond CableLabs is of HD VOD content, so it makes perfect sense that the gurus behind the scenes are aiming to provide media that satisfies the discerning eye of the HD viewer. Considering that nearly every HDTV owner has a sneaking suspicion that they're not getting the bandwidth they're paying for at times, CableLabs new specifications hope to ensure that HD VOD viewers don't get the "HD Lite" experience. While the recommended SD VOD rate remained steady at just 3.75Mbps, CableLabs has named 15Mbps the "safe harbor bitrate" to allow all forms of HD VOD content (including talking heads and fast-moving action films) to be seen at a quality that represents what HDTV should be about, including 5.1 audio and an absence of pixelation. Of course, these latest suggestions are entirely based on MPEG2 transfers, and could very well change if MPEG4 starts running the show, but at the very least it's good to see someone making sure we get our due bandwidth.