Disney+ is surprisingly bringing HDR back
Disney+ subscribers in some EU countries will again receive films and series in HDR10. However, the company is using the VP9-2 codec as a replacement. As a result, millions of devices such as Apple TV or Samsung televisions continue to be left out.
Return with technical hurdles
Disney+ subscribers in eleven EU countries and Brazil can stream films and series in HDR10 again. The company has not explicitly confirmed the return of the format for Germany. In this way, the group is circumventing restrictions that led to the discontinuation of high-resolution formats in July. The trigger was a defeat in the patent dispute with the technology company InterDigital over the HEVC video codec. In order to avoid license fees, Disney is changing the way the streams are transmitted. Since August, users have been able to receive 4K content again by using the alternative codec VP9.
For HDR, the service now also uses Profile 2, also called VP9-2. However, the format change comes with limitations. While modern TVs typically have a HEVC decoder, fewer devices support VP9-2. How hdtv test reported, millions of televisions and media players cannot currently play the HDR streams. Dolby Vision remains unavailable in affected countries.
Device support and metrics
Measurements show differences between the devices: A first-generation Fire TV Stick 4K received a VP9 stream with HDR10 and around 15.9 megabits per second. A third-generation Apple TV 4K, on the other hand, only played an H.264 stream in SDR at around 4.8 megabits per second. Newer Android TV and Google TV models from Philips, Sony and TCL as well as Amazon Fire TV sticks are compatible. Hisense smart TVs from model year 2019 and LG devices from 2020 also process the streams. Apple TV 4K, Nvidia Shield, Samsung televisions with Tizen and Panasonic televisions, on the other hand, still deliver neither 4K nor HDR images.
New trouble is already looming
The waiver of functions instead of license payments has brought consumer advocates into action. Euroconsumers and other European associations are demanding compensation for subscribers because they do not receive the advertised services. Meanwhile, Disney is said to be appealing against the European Patent Court’s original ruling. However, the return of 4K and HDR10 could only be temporary. InterDigital expanded its lawsuit before the Unified Patent Court in August to include VP9 coding technologies. If the court rules in favor of the plaintiff here too, the high-resolution premium content could again be omitted.
