HDTV slow to take off: Survey

Only 6% of all Canadians are watching TV in high definition. A national survey by Astral Media's The Movie Network and Ipsos-Reid found that Canadians are slow to adapt to HDTV technology.
- 14% of Canadians currently have an HD-ready TV set, and of those only 40 % have the set-top box required to deliver an HD-quality picture.
- 16% percent of Canadians said they were unaware they even needed an HD set-top box
- 41 % of owners said they did not have a box because there isn't enough HD content currently available from broadcasters to make it worth their while.
- One in five Canadians plan to buy an HD TV, with 46% of this group looking to make the purchase this year.
On May 1, The Movie Network started TMNHD, which airs movies and series 24 hours in high definition. The HD channel is free to subscribers of TMN. TMN's regular schedule featuring HBO and Showtime programming will be available on the new channel. All in-house productions with TMN, such as ReGenesis, G-Spot, Slings & Arrows, and Terminal City will also be broadcast in HD as long as viewers have their HD set-top box.
By Staff 
May 3, 2005

Only 6% of all Canadians are watching TV in high definition. A national survey by Astral Media’s The Movie Network and Ipsos-Reid found that Canadians are slow to adapt to HDTV technology.

– 14% of Canadians currently have an HD-ready TV set, and of those only 40 % have the set-top box required to deliver an HD-quality picture.

– 16% percent of Canadians said they were unaware they even needed an HD set-top box

– 41 % of owners said they did not have a box because there isn’t enough HD content currently available from broadcasters to make it worth their while.

– One in five Canadians plan to buy an HD TV, with 46% of this group looking to make the purchase this year.

On May 1, The Movie Network started TMNHD, which airs movies and series 24 hours in high definition. The HD channel is free to subscribers of TMN. TMN’s regular schedule featuring HBO and Showtime programming will be available on the new channel. All in-house productions with TMN, such as ReGenesis, G-Spot, Slings & Arrows, and Terminal City will also be broadcast in HD as long as viewers have their HD set-top box.