We already caught Panasonic gloating about its H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC-related Emmy earlier this year, but now the full list of award winners are getting their moment in the spotlight. TV Technology is reporting that a number of entities, outfits and agencies responsible for fostering growth in the high-def arena are set to accept Emmy awards on the eve of CES 2009. Some of the big winners are the Advisory Committee on Advanced Television Service, Advanced Television Systems Committee, the Advanced Television Test Center and the Advanced Television Evaluation Laboratory, all of which helped in "devising the standardization of the ATSC Digital System." Also of note, the Metropolitan Opera was gifted with an award for its achievement in HD "cinema-casting," and awards are headed to Toshiba, Sony, Panasonic, Hitachi, Philips, Molex, Japan Aviation Electronics and Intel (among others) for their work on HDMI. Glasses up to the victors!

Maybe we're just sticklers for getting things right, but the "outcome" of this fiasco still isn't sitting well with us. If you'll recall, earlier this month Charter failed to deliver a 65-inch HDTV to a contest winner, and instead, it shipped a box large enough for a 19-inch TV (which the recipient refused). After being pelted with angry cries from the media, the carrier finally bit the bullet and sent over a 42-inch HDTV alongside a 19-incher (which was probably the same one originally refused). The family seems fairly content with the resolution, but the man is still owed a 65-inch HDTV in our eyes. Oh, and if you couldn't guess, a company employee told the winner that all of this spawned from a simple "miscommunication at the office." Uh, you think that's a bit of an understatement, or what?

[Image courtesy of ZMETravel]

We're tempted to chalk this one up to miscommunication, but something just reeks of wrongdoing. As the story goes, one particular winner of a Charter Father's Day contest was promised a 65-inch HDTV as well as free Charter services for an entire year. The only requirement was to pay sales tax on the winnings -- fair enough, right? After receiving a phone call and email confirmation from the carrier, the winning dad sat down with his jubilant daughter and unsuccessfully tried to fax in his W-9. Afterwards, he decided to mail it in, and after a bit of rigmarole, a Charter associate contacted him with news that it couldn't deliver the promised set; instead, it would "try" to get him a 42-incher, though a 19-inch TV was likely in his future. After a few more days of nothing, a box arrived at his door "large enough to hold a 19-inch television," which the "winner" promptly refused. Can't make this stuff up, folks.

[Image courtesy of ZMETravel]

We guess they don't call it "Elite" for nuthin', as Pioneer's Elite Pro-FHD1 has been crowned the "Product of the Year" according to Sound and Vision Magazine and Ultimate AV. The firm's 50-inch, 1080p plasma was deemed a "technological milestone, complete with images that burst off the display for a near 3D effect," which are pretty strong words considering the smorgasbord of fantastic PDPs alone that came out last year. Of course, Mr. Mossberg would probably still argue that his Pioneer Elite PRO-1140HD was the better choice, but hey, he also tried to convince us that 1080p wasn't an important factor when scouting our your next set. Nevertheless, our hats are off to the folks at Pioneer, and while we're sure this beauty deserved its tiara, the $7,999 pricetag will still keep it out of all but the most affluent homes -- and Pioneer, don't count on next year's award coming easy, as you've already got some seriously stiff competition just a fortnight into the new year.