If other cable companies back the format endorsed by TCI - also backed by Intel, Compaq and Lucent - broadcaster and television equipment companies could be forced to adopt requirements set by the PC industry as the digital format for next-generation television.
The cable companies deliver television signals to two-thirds of US households. Television maker and broadcaster backs a specification from the ATSC Advanced Television Systems Committee, using MPEG 2 and 18 digital formats to be decoded by television sets.
Compaq, Intel and Microsoft believe these are both too complex and not flexible enough and propose instead a lower resolution subset of the ATSC format for viewing pictures on computer monitors as well as television screens.
It also leaves room in the broadcast signal for the transmission of additional data that would enable supplementary information to be supplied in real time alongside television broadcasts. Microsoft calls this format, which really sacrifices the highest quality pictures for more flexible use of services, HD-Zero.
