When the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons played their preseason game last night, FOX viewers were treated to the ‘ultimate’ experience. Until now, all field shots were framed in 4×3 and not 16×9 widescreen. This is presumably because the number of people with high-definition televisions was quite low.
Now that the adoption rate of high-def televisions has increased quite a bit, FOX made the bold move to improve the viewing experience and I like what they did. It’s not a revolutionary move, I admit, but we do get to see more of the players on the field now.
The only negative aspect of the move is the people who are still watching on old televisions won’t get a great viewing experience. Depending on how your local FOX affiliate decides to handle it, you’re going to either get letterboxed or you’ll just get the sides cropped off.
Below is a video from the game’s broadcast showing the difference in 16×9 vs 4×3. Pardon the fact that it’s out of sync. I didn’t record it.
One of the things I liked most about the new broadcast was the small scoreboard. It was less intrusive than those we’ve seen in the past. I like what FOX is doing with their NFL broadcasts. Now let’s see everyone else make the same move.
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