Why won't a 1080P TV receive a 1080P signal?

Broadcast Television currently does not use 1080p. The HD formats in use at present are 720p and 1080i. The "i" stands for interlaced and it means that on a single pass of the screen half of the image is built up. The second pass sees the remainder of the image added to the first half. A full image is delivered 25 or 30 times each second. A 1080p signal delivers a full image on every pass, 50 or 60 times each second. 1080p therefore needs double the amount of data compared to 1080i. Broadcast infrastructure and the extra bandwidth requirements prevent 1080p being broadcast. 1080p is limited at present to Bluray and other local HD sources such as computers and game consoles. Don't expect to see 1080p from your television service provider any time soon. The 1080p identification on the television says that it will display 1080p but of course can only do this with a 1080p incoming signal.