Apparently, AMD has been having problems with HDMI 2.1 on Linux for three years now… But the company can’t release open-source drivers correcting this problem, all for legal reasons… Great.
HDMI 2.1: AMD can’t release open-source drivers!
Since 2021, when HDMI specifications became private, AMD has been struggling with its open-source drivers. Indeed, this standard enables 4K displays at 120 Hz or 5K 240 Hz, but the company simply can’t offer it to its Linux users, nor correct problems linked to these display parameters. Why not? Quite simply because the HDMI Forum, which holds the rights to its functionalities, refuses to publish open-source drivers.
The sad part of the story is that AMD has devoted time and resources to this issue. Even if the development of support for these features has only lasted a few months, it’s time, effort and resources that have been wasted. AMD engineer Alex Deucher comments:
“The HDMI Forum has unfortunately rejected our proposal. Currently, an open-source HDMI 2.1 implementation is not possible without violating theHDMI Forum prerequisites.”
In the meantime, what’s left for Linux users? Use DisplayPort, which remains an open standard. For the time being, it’s a safe bet that new HDMI features on Linux won’t see the light of day for some time to come from AMD.
