So while over-the-air broadcasters are stuck with MPEG-2, cable and satellite companies are fascinated by MPEG-4, particularly H.264. Whereas MPEG-2 needs 20 to 25 megabits per second per channel for HDTV content, H.264 can do a superior job with as little as eight megabits per second, allowing providers to carry three times as many channels as they could with the older encoding technology.

In fact, satellite TV provider DirecTV just last week launched Spaceway F1, the first of four new satellites that will carry H.264-encoded high-definition content to subscribers' set-top boxes. (Yes, you will need a new set-top box.)

So H.264 for HDTV is clearly a very big deal. I haven't even mentioned yet how it's a part of both the HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc next-generation home video specifications, or how Europe's reigning standards body approved H.264 for over-the-air use last fall, or how the government of France has not merely approved but actually mandated the use of H.264 for their over-the-air HDTV broadcasts. . .