On Macworld 2007.

For me, far cooler than the iPhone were the details about the Apple TV box, specifically the revelation that it will support 720p HD content. Now, this isn't a big deal from the iTunes Store perspective, which only sells standard definition content--so far. But for an independent filmmaker, suddenly, bam! there's a new distribution channel that can go directly to a viewer's TV with all the ease of use of iTunes.

You see, there's nothing stopping me from releasing a high-definition movie on the Internet right now. But most people would watch it on their computers, and that's only if their computers were powerful enough (most aren't as of this writing). But if Apple TV takes off, there will be a significant number of people who can download hi-def content off the 'Net and watch it on their television--directly, no computer middleman, just drag the movie to iTunes and let the Apple TV sync itself.

(Is it possible to do that now with a Windows Media Center-type PC? I don't know. I haven't done the research.)

In any case, I'm super-excited at the possibilities. Could it be that by the time the HD-DVD and Blu-ray wars have played out, HD on DVD will be irrelevant? As a consumer, I still prefer solid discs, since they're less likely to be lost in a hard drive crash (and the DRM is easier to defeat). But as an artist, I say: bring it on.