The lack of enthusiasm shown by the BBC towards Baird's low-definition system was a source of much concern and frustration to Baird and his supporters, and resulted in delays in the execution of their plans. The monopolistic position of the Corporation during the early years of the Baird companies was, of course, a considerable obstacle. Essentially, the BBC was not interested in participating in the advancement of television on the basis of a system that could not reproduce images of, say, a test match at Lord's or tennis at Wimbledon; the BBC considered that low-definition television was inappropriate to its service. As a consequence, the BBC's policy towards Baird's work was necessarily negative in outlook and did not conduce to a rapid advancement of Baird's aspirations. Patronage and encouragement are important factors in the early development of an invention. Marconi initially was fortunate in this respect.

Inspec keywords: television; history

Other keywords: Baird's low-definition system; BBC; Marconi; low-definition television

Subjects: Other general electrical engineering topics