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They're here... September 9, 1998 There is no question television manufacturers think the pretty pictures are worth the high price tags, and they are all working hard to provide consumers with high-quality, cost-effective sets and set-top boxes. While some may argue they have not come up with a price the average consumer can afford, they have come up with some high-tech television sets. The first few sets began hitting the stores in select markets last month. This roll-out occurred despite the fact there is little digital programming available to consumers, and few television markets have digital broadcast test stations. However, Unity Motion plans to have digital programming available in September. Panasonic introduced and began shipping 56-inch projection HDTV with 1080 interlaced lines of resolution. The set is available to all Panasonic retailers and has been on display in Denver, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, San Diego, and Manhattan. Panasonic will also be introducing a set-top box for decoding a digital signal in October, followed by a digital VHS/VCR in November. The company also hopes to have a 36-inch multiscan, digital and analog signal compatible, television out soon. The suggested retail prices for Panasonic’s products are $1,799.95 for the 56-inch TV, $3,199.95 for the 36-inch multiscan TV, and less than $1,000 for the VCR. Bill Pritchard, a spokesman for Panasonic, said the company has come out with its digital television sets so quickly because they are able to receive both an analog and digital signal. Panasonic took its digital capabilities on a road show stopping in Las Vegas, Denver, Manhattan, and Minneapolis. The company offered consumer seminars on digital television and sold some sets as well, including the first HDTV ever sold to a customer at an Ultimate Electronics store in Denver. Jason Zoellner, store manager at Ultimate Electronics in Las Vegas, said the store hosted 200 people on the hour every hour when the Panasonic set came to his store. The demonstration included digital videotape from the Nagano Olympics, shown in a 1080i format, Zoellner said, and resulted in the sale of four or five HDTV sets. The buyers of the Panasonic sets purchased the sets because they offer an excellent picture for DVD technology and satellite broadcasts, Jim Pierce, Director of Marketing for Ultimate Electronics said. The purchasers are “the type of people who are early adopters,” and want to get the latest technology first, he said. Zenith also has an HDTV capable set currently on the market—a projection TV capable of displaying a 60-inch to 200-inch diagonal screen. The PRO900X is a multiscan set capable of displaying digital signals, analog signals, and computer displays. The set was introduced commercially in 1997 and has made the cross-over to high-end home theater enthusiasts, Zenith spokesman John Taylor said. The set has a suggested retail price of $12,600. Zenith plans to introduce a $6,000 digital decoder for the set this fall. Taylor stressed the importance of commercial applications for HDTV saying the public arena will be a “important catalyst for HDTV.” Zenith hopes to sell the PRO900X to sports bars, hotels, and restaurants in order to show the public the advantages of HDTV. Panasonic and Zenith appear to be alone in putting its sets on the market before HDTV programming is widely available. Other manufacturers will be introducing sets at the end of this year and early next year. Digital broadcast signals and HDTV via DBS are slated for launch in November. Those waiting until later this year are largely doing so because their products are not yet ready to be shipped on a mass scale, according to executives at those companies. Thomson Consumer Electronics plans to have high-definition sets ready by early next year and will be demonstrating them this fall. The company currently has two models under different brand names and a set-top box capable of handling digital signals, analog signals, and DirecTv Inc. and U.S. Satellite Broadcasting Inc. (Satellite Business News, May 6, 1998). The PROSCAN PS61000 is Thomson’s higher-end HDTV set. It has a 51-inch diagonal screen and is a rear projection set. The TV has a suggested retail price of $7,999. The RCA P55000 is also a rear projection set, with a 55-inch diagonal screen, and a suggested retail price of $6,999. Thomson expects to show these sets in some of the ten metropolitan areas where HDTV signals will be available in the fall, although spokesman James Harper said they may not be available in all of those cities. Sony Electronics Inc. will be coming out with an HDTV set by late November or early December, according to spokesman Dave Migdal. However, further information on the set is not yet available. Sony plans to introduce the set at a press event this month (Satellite Business News, May 6, 1998). Sharp’s SharpVision brand is releasing the 64LHP5000, a 64-inch rear-projection set. The set displays a 1080i picture and converts other DTV formats into a 1080i picture. The set also features a digital expansion port that will allow consumers to upgrade their sets as digital technology develops. According to Sharp literature, the television will have a suggested retail price of $9,999 and will be shipped in the fourth quarter. Sharp will also be coming out with a DTV decoder capable of migrating from NTSC to HDTV. The SharpVision TU-DTV 1000 DTV Decoder is capable of receiving and converting digital formats to 480i, 480p, and 1080i HDTV formats. “[HDTV] is going to be a lot bigger than it is now,” Sharp spokeswoman Alison Klapper said, adding Sharp is seeking ways to provide more content, such as interactivity, via digital signals. —David Connell OTHER DIGITAL TV BEATS HBO HDTV GETS READY: Titles Coming Up On HBO HDTV March 10, 1999 THE DATA HORIZON: PBS Tackles the Bandwidth Usage Question February 24, 1999 RESEARCH: The Reports Are in, But the Conclusions Are Confusing February 10, 1999   NEW FEES: There Is No Such Thing as Free Spectrum January 27, 1999   CES TV TALK: More Buzz than the Sequins on an Elvis Jacket January 13, 1999   CES: Bright Lights, Big Pictures to Hit Vegas December 16, 1998   LOCAL EFFORTS: Broadcasters Give Viewers A Push Toward TV Purchase November 18, 1998 FIRSTS: Digital TV Broadcasts Hit the Airwaves November 4, 1998 THOMSON'S DBS BRAIN: Channels ARE Plentiful in New Digital TV World October 21, 1998 DECISIONS, DECISIONS: Taking the Plunge into Digital TV October 7, 1998 FIREWIRE: So the Blender Says to the Toaster, He Says... 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