A not quite so universal standard
In an ideal world, UHD Premium would reduce consumer confusion, but of course this isn't an ideal world. The UHD Premium badge can only be used by companies who are active members of the alliance, meaning a non-member like Yamaha who produces AV receivers is unable to use the badge despite its AV receivers meeting the specification.
Making matters more confusing is the fact that Sony, a full member of the alliance remember, is opting to use its own 4K branding over the UHD Premium badge.
UHD Premium was supposed to stop people from having to scour the small print of a TV's specifications to work out if it's actually backwards compatible, but it looks like until the UHD Alliance addresses these issues then consumer confusion is set to remain for some time yet.
What's more troubling, is that if standards surrounding color depth and HDR don't end up being adopted by manufacturers, then they might not make it into people's homes, and TV and film producers might not see any value in supporting them.
And then even savvy consumers with UHD Premium sets won't be able to enjoy the benefits that the standard brings.
UHD Premium has a long way to go
The UHD Premium specification was created with a single purpose, to get everyone from TV manufacturers, to broadcasters, to video streaming services, onto the same page and allow them to use new technologies without having to worry about users being able to understand them.
But the result in its current form is a standard that seems to be adding more confusion than it's solving.
Hopefully one day buying a new TV will be as simple as checking for the UHD Premium set that best meets your needs, but as the specification stands we're a long way from that point.
