(24/06/2013) Chris Johns, BSkyB's chief engineer/broadcast strategy, has said that the pay-TV broadcaster has no imminent Ultra-HD plans but is examining closely its delivery options, and stressed the need for testing of the technology so that when Sky does launch 4K it is done right .
We've no plans to launch a U-HD service at this point in time, he told delegates to the Beyond HDTV' conference in London. It is still very early days. With HD we went through a two year test period. With 3D it was 18 months. We are still at that early phase so that when we are able to deliver a beyond HD' viewing experience we can deliver a high quality one.
One of the main challenges to overcome, he said, was that of frame rate. All the available 4K displays that we are using are 30Hz or less, when we need, at the very least 50fps, for sports and arguably higher, he said. Johns referred to beyond HD rather than Ultra HD, preferring to keep all of Sky's potential delivery options open. He said that over-the-air Ultra HD transmission could be surpassed in terms of timeframe by IP delivery to the home.
He explained that in the past 8 years Sky has evolved from a standard definition delivery model, to HD, from small screens to larger screens, from 2D to 3D, and from basic digital compression to advanced codecs.
Something beyond HD might have no interlace, more resolution, finer pixels and these are all great. But what else is there? It has to deliver a new viewing experience. It has to be something consumers want to have, Johns explained, adding that the experience has to have a range of content from the start, not just a couple of shows a week.
It also has to have improved motion portrayal and it has to have dynamic range, Johns said. You are missing an evolutionary technical step if you don't deliver that treat to the eyeballs. More colour is a nice to have but will only enhance the experience of certain sequences of certain programs [general views in travel shows for example].
However, he did give one strong hint as to a possible start date: If we are able to deliver it all in 2014 then great, he added. But there are many elements to solve. The question for today is how far we have gone with some of those elements for the next generation of visual experience to the customer.
copyrighted by liveProduction.tv Sky Germany commits to Ultra-HDTV
Already at IBC 2012, Sky Deutschland became the first of the Sky-branded European channels to come out firmly in favour of Ultra-HDTV. Brian Sullivan, CEO declared: We already have an Ultra-HDTV project working here. It's all early days but I am a great enthusiast and a big and positive supporter of Ultra High Def. I first saw a demo about six years ago when the camera was about the size of a small car but even when I saw that almost static picture, I was totally, totally captivated and when it happens, I can promise you we will be one of the first. It makes sense for Pay-TV to showcase this technology in the first instance.
Sky Deutschland is fast growing, and German consumers are known to appreciate high quality. Indeed, his comments suggest that other parts of the News Corp pay-TV broadcasting arms are also looking at U-HD for an early introduction.
Sky Deutschland is fast growing, and German consumers are known to appreciate high quality. Indeed, his comments suggest that other parts of the News Corp pay-TV broadcasting arms are also looking at U-HD for an early introduction. Sullivan's technology background is second-to-none. His experience included many years working at BSkyB on technology aspects of the business, notably the introduction of the Sky+ set-top box, HDTV and then 3D TV. The 2012 UEFA Champions League Final was coverd in HD and 3D by Host Broadcaster Sky Germany and at the 2013 UEFA Champions League Semi-Final Sky Germany testet together with the UEFA a recording of the match in 4K with two different 4K camera set-ups. Also at the Bundesliga match Bayern M nchen - Borussia Dortmund Sky Germany was testing 4K.
Sullivan is not alone in planning for U-HDTV. Satellite operator SES, already carrying Sky's UK and German signals, as well as Canal Plus, is also ready. Ferdinand Kayser is CCO at SES. It's been at the heart of SES since its early days to deliver a large choice of linear TV in the highest possible quality. With Ultra-HD we now see our customers, some of the largest broadcasters in the world, embracing an even higher picture quality. It will be the next big thing in broadcasting taking the consumer experience to the next level. It will make linear TV even stronger and more compelling and ensure satellite will remain the most powerful TV infrastructure in the future.
Kayser added SES would go the extra mile' for U-HDTV, and is contributing to the development of the necessary ecosystem both operationally and technically in order to make Ultra-HD happen.
It is the same at SPS, the SES-owned Munich play-out centre used by Sky Deutschland. Wilfred Urner is CEO at SPS. For me the question is not so much when we might start to play it out, we could do this tomorrow. To make U-HD a success for our clients the flat screens will have to be Ultra-HD ready, and it isn't so many years ago that we had the same problem with high definition.
Those flat-screens are now appearing. IFA 2012 in Berlin showcased plenty of 4K models (and some capable of 8K resolution). They're were cheap, but at NAB 2013 we already saw prices tumble: Sony offered a 55 inch set at $ 5,000. All will now depend on the emerging of the High Efficiency Video Codec (HEVC) which is now being standardised.
Set-top box specialists Pace is also busy on the reception end of the equation. Mike Pulli is Pace's CEO. HEVC is undoubtedly the base line for the next major steps in Digital
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
07/08/2025
July 8 2025, 22:30 (PDT) Tata Motors & Dolby Bring Dolby Atmos to Harrier.ev, R...
17/07/2025
Early Thursday morning, the U.S. Senate voted to cut federal funding for PBS and NPR in a bill that also included cuts for foreign aid. In a 51-48 vote, the act...
17/07/2025
GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland Pavilions across IBC2025 (12 15 September, RAI Amsterdam) feature a remarkable 34 companies, each providing unique, innovativ...
17/07/2025
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers today introduced its Content Provenance and Authenticity (CPA) in Media Study Group (S...
17/07/2025
NEW YORK Despite widespread concerns about a soft advertising market, NBCUniversal said it closed its 2025-26 upfront negotiation cycle with a record ad sales v...
17/07/2025
NEW YORK Television advertising remains an effective means to market and influence younger baby boomer and Generation X consumers approaching retirement age, ac...
17/07/2025
ALLENTOWN, Pa. & JERSEY CITY, N.J. Service Electric Cable TV and OpenVault have announced that the operator is deploying the OpenVault Proactive Network Manage...
17/07/2025
WASHINGTON Following up on his first major policy speech just two ago, Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr is promising to buck the usual summ...
17/07/2025
Luxembourg, 14 July 2025 - SES received the final regulatory approvals for the SES-Intelsat transaction, including the US Federal Communications Commission.
O...
17/07/2025
Berklee Alumni Nominated for 2025 Emmy Awards Twenty-three Berklee alumni received nominations across categories in sound mixing, sound editing, and compositi...
16/07/2025
It's Emmy nominations day, and Sundance Institute storytellers are basking i...
16/07/2025
Spotify's podcast editorial team is always on the hunt for shows and episodes that spark conversation, push boundaries, and keep us coming back for more. As...
16/07/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
16/07/2025
Join us at IBC this September and take control of your content. Discover how we're bringing a new level of purpose and precision to the application of AI in...
16/07/2025
Warsaw - Poland, June 24, 2025 - Nielsen, the global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, has released its latest May All Screens Video Landscape...
16/07/2025
Bluey Tops Nielsen's Overall Streaming List with More Than 25 Billion Minutes Streamed from January through June 2025
Big June Vaults Squid Game into Top O...
16/07/2025
TV SIM, the SBT affiliate serving Esp rito Santo state in Brazil, has launched a transmitter upgrade initiative with the installation of a Rohde & Schwarz R&S T...
16/07/2025
Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, is turning its vision to the future of automation with its demonstrations ...
16/07/2025
Ikegami announces a new addition to its UNICAM-XE product range with the introduction of the UHK-X700RF wireless portable camera: The new version has the same f...
16/07/2025
Today, Amazon Web Services added TwelveLabs as a new model provider to Amazon Bedrock, delivering what could be the most significant breakthrough in enterprise ...
16/07/2025
NEW YORK Streaming platforms continued to dominate TV viewing patterns in June, with data from Nielsen's 50th monthly report of The Gauge showing that strea...
16/07/2025
MAHWAH, NJ Ikegami has introduced the the UHK-X700RF wireless portable camera, a new addition to its UNICAM-XE product range with the same feature set, operatio...
16/07/2025
LONDON IBC2025 organizers said global attendees will have access to a new feature that will integrate Amsterdam's GVB public transport pass into the officia...
16/07/2025
July 16th, 2025
Tribeca Films to Release the Acclaimed LARPing Doc WE CAN BE HEROES by Carina Mia Wong and Alex Simmons, Alongside a Slate of Festival-Favori...
16/07/2025
Deltatre Acquires Endeavor Streaming in Major Streaming Industry Move The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2025 By Brandon Costa, Direc...
16/07/2025
SVG Regional Sports Production Summit 2025: All Sessions Now Available to Watch ...
16/07/2025
Wednesday 16 July 2025
Sky and ITV today announced an extension of their long-standing partnership, which will see ITV's content and services remain seamle...
16/07/2025
Sky Sports lifts the lid on Lions life with hilarious behind-the-scenes mockumentaryWednesday 16 July 2025
To view this content, please enable our use of cooki...
16/07/2025
CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA Apple TV+ today earned a record-breaking 81 Emmy Award nominations across 14 hit Apple Original titles for this year's 77th Emmy Awa...
15/07/2025
Independent media outlets in Brazil and Colombia are invited to apply for a new programme aimed at strengthening the long-term resilience of journalism in the f...
15/07/2025
By Lucy Spicer
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
15/07/2025
Spotify une fuerzas con DiDi, la app l der en servicios de movilidad, delivery y...
15/07/2025
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
15/07/2025
L3Harris put its CORVUS-RAVEN counter-small UAS capability into the hands of soldiers at VANAHEIM, showcasing its ability to provide passive signal detect, enha...
15/07/2025
Netflix Viewing Up 13.5% vs. May, Represents 42% of Monthly Gain for Streaming
...
15/07/2025
SAN FRANCISCO and BENGALARU, India Sangeeta Chakraborty has been named chief revenue officer at Amagi, a cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) technology pro...
15/07/2025
As part of its mandate, the Advanced Television Systems Committee the U.S. organization tasked with developing advanced broadcast TV standards promotes ATSC 3.0...
15/07/2025
QuickLink, the leading global provider of multi-camera video productions and remote contributions, announces the launch of two innovative control panels Studi...
15/07/2025
Chris Kontopanos has joined leading high-quality microphone solutions manufacturer, DPA Microphones, as the company's new Regional Sales Manager for the Mid...
15/07/2025
Magnifi by VideoVerse, a global leader in AI-powered video automation, has launched a major platform upgrade built to simplify live and archival video editing f...
15/07/2025
Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, will preview its latest innovations at IBC2025, Stand 7.B21. This year's showcase highlights how...
15/07/2025
IBC2025 is set to transform the onsite experience for its global attendees with the launch of a pioneering new feature: full integration of Amsterdam's GVB ...
15/07/2025
Music, sport and technology collided in spectacular fashion as ASB GlassFloor powered the debut of Beats N Buckets, Germany's first Basketball meets Hip-Ho...
15/07/2025
The Collectv, the Emmy award-winning broadcast solutions and workflows consultancy - and winner of Broadcast Tech's Team of the Year is delighted to announc...
15/07/2025
SipRadius, the expert in secure, low latency media transport, will showcase how broadcasters and media companies can take control of fragmented IP workflows at ...
15/07/2025
Appear, the global leader in live production technology, today announced its strategic partnership with beIN ASIA PACIFIC, a leading multi-platform sports media...
15/07/2025
Company marks 15 years of innovation at the show
Broadpeak, a leader in streaming and monetization at scale, will return to IBC (Hall 1, Stand F83. RAI, Amster...
(24/06/2013) Chris Johns, BSkyB's chief engineer/broadcast strategy, has said that the pay-TV broadcaster has no imminent Ultra-HD plans but is examining closely its delivery options, and stressed the need for testing of the technology so that when Sky does launch 4K it is done right .
