FIFA World Cup and IBC Take Ultra HD Centre Stage

Consumer interest in Ultra HD should get a shot in the arm(chair) this summer when FIFA markets the higher-than HD resolution capture of the last three matches from the Maracan stadium. Its not clear if any of FIFAs rights holders have opted to broadcast the feed which will nonetheless be used by several of them to demonstrate to their boardrooms what is possible.

There is an inevitability about Ultra HD and while there are serious debates to be had about the exact calibration of pixels, dynamic range and - importantly for sportscasters - frame rates, therell soon be no shortage of ways to produce it. The rash of cut-price 4K cameras coming to market this year will make Ultra HD an attractive origination format for producers of all stripes. Other costs increase with higher storage, processing and network requirements, but nevertheless, 4K production is becoming remarkably affordable.

This is matched by 4K TV buying patterns which are reckoned to be on a similar, but faster growth curve than HDTV. Analysts Parks Associates predict that 4K TVs will reach mass-market pricing in the next 2-3 years and top 80 per cent of (US) households in approximately 10-12 years which is three to five years ahead of HD TV.

Sony anticipates its Ultra HD TV sales will increase four-fold this year with sales in the Chinese market alone increasing six times. Another piece of research from Leichtman Research Group found that 30 per cent of adults (again in the US) have heard of 4K Ultra HD, and about one-third of that group had seen a 4K TV. A third of those who have seen a 4K TV are very interested in getting one.

Several observers believe that 4K will be delivered via OTT first with companies like Netflix, Comcast, and Amazon already working on 4K-based offerings. As 4K traffic increases over the next two years, traffic demands on broadband networks will grow dramatically. As a result, operators are aggressively looking into bandwidth-saving technologies, including video codec HEVC. While movies will drive 4K OTT, it will be live sports which will propel Ultra HD broadcasts. In the UK, rivals BSkyB and BT Sport have already expressed interest while Russian pay-TV provider NTV Plus plans to launch 4K this winter. The Gazprom-owned channel test-ran the format during the Sochi Olympics and has its eyes on the bonanza of 2018 when the FIFA World Cup Final lands in the country.

The differences between HD and Ultra-HD TV are very noticeable, said Oleg Kolesnikov, NTV's Technical Director at MIPTV recently. We need the new HDMI 2.0 interface, otherwise we are limited to 25/30 frames per second on the existing HDMI 1.4. New chipsets, which will emerge later this year, and set-top boxes, will mean that viewers will be able to see fast-moving sports at 50-60 fps.

When in 2018 the World Cup soccer takes place in Russia the 4K technology will be mature enough for mass-market adoption. FIFAs current World Cup production plans are as noteworthy for what they dont include. While it refuses to rule out a 3D production it is clear that the large-scale stereoscopic experiment during the 2010 finals will not be repeated this time around. The interest from broadcasters is simply not there.

IHS Technology recently revealed that the market share of 3D movies at the box office has fallen for the fourth year in a row. On average during 2013, 3D titles generated just 41.4 per cent of their total revenues from 3D screens, this despite Gravity, the most celebrated 3D film in history, winning the 2014 Academy Award for best film.

Moreover, IHS Technology reports that there are now more 3D channel closures than launches. The first 3D TV transmissions arrived in 2010, and although numbers peaked around 50 there are now just 26 channels worldwide. IHS does though single out the Sky group (BSkyB, Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland) for continuing to positively support the format.

The IBC2014 Conference will be the first place to hear at first hand and in-depth about the experiences of FIFAs Brazil World Cup production, while the IBC Exhibition is the place to discover the very latest in 4K technology and to judge for yourself whether the investment is worth it.

LINK:	http://www.ibc.org/page.cfm/action=library/libID=2/libEntryID=228/list...
	See more stories from ibc

Most recent headlines