iPlayer HLG/UHD HDR on Samsung’s J and K Series TVs

[ewanstancarr]

So, of the nigh on 400 TVs supported in BBC iplayer for the Blue Planet II  HLG episodes none are from Samsung. Oh joy. 

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Moderator edit: Original thread title was "Blue Planet 2 HLG - No Samsung". With the OP's permission, the title was changed on 12/03/2018 to accurately reflect the dominant theme of the thread as it has progressed. If the reader would like to know more about the HLG format, please check out the BBC's page and FAQ's on it here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/rd/projects/high-dynamic-range Thank you, AntS.

[jordanwebbo90]

I wonder if somebody asks specifically about the EDID issue whether we would get the same response or the usual "Please keep an eye on our website/social media for updates"

[dunwell]

I tried to make my letter to the CEO more focused on the EDID issue but I fear I will get the generic iPlayer statement back.

[dunwell]

Looks like someone has asked on Twitter already!

"Could you confirm whether a fix is being worked on for the EDID bug in the current KS TV firmware which prevents devices connected by HDMI displaying HLG content please? If so, when can we expect this to be released? UK broadcasters are rolling out HLG to their devices already."

[crashcris]

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@TastyBurger666 wrote:

I'm already sick of the World Cup and it hasn't even started yet!

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You won't be saying that when England are in the final. Could you imagine the odds you'd get at a bookmaker for England winning the World Cup and Samsung sorting out the EDID in time??? We'd all be millionaires for a £1 punt.

[JAMES4578]

Thanks to @AntS for all his efforts but the official  statement will be frustrating for all those concerned.  Unless we hear otherwise in the near future  take it this is the definite position, whilst no specifics on the EDID issue would appear there are no immediate plans to sort this out though perhaps more details will be forthcoming.  There may be rumours from so called sources  working at Direct Tv and the like in US, but shoud not read too much into it. The only real option at the moment would appear to be HD Fury as others have  mentioned though some may not consider it an insignificant cost. In this case you may have opportunity to seek redress if appropriate.

[dunwell]

Here is my response from CEO office

Dear Mr ******

We can confirm receipt of your e-mail of yesterday morning concerning the availability of BBC iPlayer UHD / HDR / HLG content.

All of Samsung’s 2016 HDR TVs support HLG Broadcast technology (firmware update required).  BBC UHD i-Player however relies on a mixture of technologies, not just HLG, to enable its streaming of UHD content.  Samsung have no plans to support BBC UHD  i-Player on its 2016 UHD TV Range.

However, we can confirm that we do support UHD via HDMI.

We thank you for your contact and do recognise both your and other Samsung customers comments and feedback concerning this matter which is recognised and valued.

Regards

Sean *****

Senior Customer Services Executive| UK & Eire

[dunwell]

For completeness, I have replied and will share any response received.

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Dear Sean

Thank you for your prompt reply.

I’m aware of the statement regarding the BBC iPlayer app but I did go to great lengths in my original e-mail to explain that it was not this which I was asking about.

My correspondence specifically related to the delivery of HLG over HDMI, which the television is more than capable of handling. A very small, simple software fix to ensure the television can handle EDID information in the industry standard manner is all that is required.

Could you please provide a definitive answer on whether this fix for the EDID bug is being worked on and when we can expect this to be released.

Many thanks

[paul1111]

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@dunwell wrote:

Here is my response from CEO office

Dear Mr ******

We can confirm receipt of your e-mail of yesterday morning concerning the availability of BBC iPlayer UHD / HDR / HLG content.

All of Samsung’s 2016 HDR TVs support HLG Broadcast technology (firmware update required).  BBC UHD i-Player however relies on a mixture of technologies, not just HLG, to enable its streaming of UHD content.  Samsung have no plans to support BBC UHD  i-Player on its 2016 UHD TV Range.

However, we can confirm that we do support UHD via HDMI.

We thank you for your contact and do recognise both your and other Samsung customers comments and feedback concerning this matter which is recognised and valued.

Regards

Sean *****

Senior Customer Services Executive| UK & Eire

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Again no mention of Hlg over HDMI and edid. Seems to be something they are not keen to talk about. 

[TastyBurger666]

I think we get that it's a company-wide official position, and they won't budge on it.

But as we already know the reason WHY it doesn't work, perhaps the Widevine angle is the way to go; did Samsung put the TV on the market knowing it was crippled in this way?

The supporting material is on the Tizen Developer website after all...

[AntS]

Hi guys.

This bit that I added after the official statement (to give you Community folks more than just the statement):

“2016 SUHD TV’s support UHD HDR HLG via Broadcast, Satellite & Terrestrial & from USB, not any other source. They do support UHD HDR via HDMI, just not when encoded using HLG.”

was the response I received when I asked the engineers about EDID and other ways of delivering HLG on a KS Series TV. I’d be very much inclined to interpret the above as no action will be forthcoming for enabling further means of HLG support on KS Series TV's.

My advice at this stage is, that as disappointing it is, it’s best to accept the situation for what it is, and from there, take the route which is best for you.

Given that there’s been discussion in this thread about alternative sources of HLG support, I’m happy to keep the thread open for that to continue if you wish; or someone can open a new thread on that topic/continue in any relevant ones already open if you guys feel that would be better for the sake of clarity.