DisplayPort 1.0
Direct Answer
DisplayPort 1.0, approved by VESA on May 3, 2006, was the original version of the royalty-free digital display standard. Its High Bit Rate (HBR) mode delivered 10.8 Gbps raw bandwidth across 4 lanes, with hot-plug detection and embedded digital audio built in from the start.
Source: VESA DisplayPort 1.0 Specification
Specs
| Approved | May 3, 2006 (VESA) |
| Max Bandwidth, HBR 4 lanes (raw / effective) | 10.8 / 8.64 Gbps |
| Link Rates | RBR: 1.62 Gbps/lane | HBR: 2.70 Gbps/lane |
VESA's Royalty-Free Alternative
DisplayPort was developed by VESA (Video Electronics Standards Association) and approved as version 1.0 on May 3, 2006, ahead of products reaching the market more broadly around 2008. VESA positions DisplayPort as royalty-free to implement -- though this hasn't been entirely uncontested, since MPEG LA separately asserted a patent-royalty claim against DisplayPort in 2015 that VESA has disputed.
From the start, DisplayPort built in features HDMI and DVI lacked at the time: native hot-plug detection, embedded digital audio over the same cable, and an auxiliary channel for device communication. Its High Bit Rate (HBR) mode provided 10.8 Gbps of raw bandwidth across four lanes -- 8.64 Gbps after encoding overhead -- comparable to contemporary HDMI bandwidth, built around a royalty-free licensing model VESA aimed at both PC and consumer electronics markets.