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The video content world is on the cusp of a major shift. The FCC has legislated that in 2006 all TV stations are to begin broadcasting in high-definition 16:9 format (meaning the ratio of image width to image height is 16 to 9). The standard format for television sets and computer monitors for many years has been 4:3.

But wait a minute—hold that thought! It turns out the TV stations aren't quite ready, so it won't be happening this year, after all. The FCC has pushed implementation back to 2008, possibly even 2009, but it's only postponed, not eliminated. The change will come for TV, but for some industries the format change is already here.

I spoke with a home theater sales manager at Draper (a leading manufacturer of video projection screens), and he said that 16:9 is the only screen format being installed in the upscale home theater market today. I am writing this article on a laptop with a 16:9 format screen. All of the LCD and plasma screens you see at Circuit City and Best Buy are 16:9 format. If you like to watch movies in "widescreen" or "letterbox" formats then you have embraced the change. The 16:9 format is already a part of our life.

So how does this complicate your choices for a new or upgraded video projection system for your church? To explain, you first need to understand that every projection system consists of three things: a screen, a projector, and content. The choice for the screen will depend not only on the viewing distance and placement of the screen, but also on the projector used and the content to be displayed.

Let's explore content and the impact it will have on screen selection. Think carefully about what you will display with your projection system. Will you project only song lyrics and the pastor's sermon notes? Will you go beyond that to incorporate full-motion video? Will you want the ability to have a Super Bowl video party? My church does this, creating a fun time of fellowship.

Text-only presentations work fine with the old standard 4:3 aspect ratio, and many existing video systems in churches have this ratio. But the future of video productions and television broadcasts is the 16:9 format, and that doesn't fit nicely on a 4:3 screen. Before you start looking at screens and projectors, you'll have to decide if yours will be a text-only system, or one that takes full advantage of current and future content. The format issue will be the turning point around which all other system decisions will be made.

It might be an easy decision, except that projectors that handle the 16:9 format are still relatively new. The 4:3 format is very mature for a high-tech product, and 4:3-format projectors have come down significantly in cost while light output (lumens) continues to increase. The 16:9-format projectors are still in the teenage years—the quantity being sold has not reached the level that will allow them to be priced competitively with the 4:3 format. So if you must have the 16:9 format, you can expect to pay close to half again or more the price of a 4:3-format unit with comparable light output.

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