QVC

I have no idea whether they've made a cock up or not. But the on screen graphics have moved from the centre to the left, thus ignoring safe-areas. However the bottom bar is still the same width, and thus stops far far from the right, which looks odd.
http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f363/TheAxG/QVC1.png

I suspect cock-up: as you say, the graphics don't appear to have been redesigned to better suit the 16:9 frame - they've just been shunted to the left.

Plus, of all the categories of channel, it is surely in a shopping one's interests to ensure essential information (price, description, phone no./URL, etc.) is available to the widest possible audience?

It's about time someone took the lead, and stopped all this messing about with 14:9 and 4:3 safe areas.

They're not an analogue broadcaster, so is this a problem ?

It is when they're broadcasting on ITV1 during The Zone.

I'd usually agree with you, Mark but why would a shopping channel want to take the pioneering role?

As I posted above, it's in their interest to ensure as many viewers as possible viewers can see the most essential info. And, yes brace yourself for the glorious roll out of the old chestnut, with the amount watching unwittingly in 4:3 stretchy, I fully expect the 4:3 safe area to live on for a while yet ( certainly on channels of this type).

Fair point, though when viewers see information cropped in half, it might lead them to investigate their STB settings (wishful thinking I suppose !)

I didn't know ITV simulcast QVC overnight ? How on earth do Ofcom allow that (rhetorical question) Oh well, that's one way to see them in HD when they start transmitting from Chiswick Park later this year !

They've been doing so for a couple of years now, only for about an hour during The Zone mind you.

Not unwittingly I'd say given that I've 'fixed' a couple of family members' 16:9 settings for them, only to find it unfixed the next time I see them

I'm going to guess at this being an intentional change albeit a surprising one. The press red icon lines up with the new graphics position perfectly. For this to have been a mistake, the same mistake would have to have been made with the press red graphics too. Once you do press red, the interactive graphics also line up perfectly, they cover up the telephone number with the options to buy through the interactive application.

The fact that the graphics have been like this all day also suggests that this isn't a mistake. It would have been corrected within minutes on a big channel like QVC if it were.

Unfortunately, QVC Style have not had their graphics moved to the left so that channel doesn't look quite as nice with the interactive graphics overlayed. QVC Beauty also still has 4:3 safe graphics but they don't have an interactive option so this isn't a problem.

For reference, here is what it looks like on analogue.

Its certainly not a mistake, they confirmed it on air yesterday at various points during the day - first outing was in The Morning Show.

I totally applaud them for doing this though. I Have to admit I never though of the issue with The Zone, although I have no idea what the rules are about this kind of thing.

The amount of people complaining to Q via the social networks was to be expected, although it seems in many cases the stubbornness to change is what many are fuelled by. It doesn't help, though, when some people have (apparently) been told to retune their digi boxes to 'fix it'!

That's only an issue for another few months



It's more in their interest to be able to put as much information on screen as they can. That doesn't necessarily mean increasing the amount of graphics, they can have everything they have now and more of the actual product