Japanese satellite operator B-SAT, backed in part by public broadcaster NHK, says its latest spacecraft B-Sat 4a, now on order from Space Systems/Loral, will be ready for widescale 4K and 8K broadcasts. B-Sat’s CEO Takashi Yabashi, says that the satellite will be used for 4K and 8K direct-to-home services, starting in 2018. The satellite is […]
The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) will commence licensing the Ultra HD Blu-ray format starting August 24th. The format represents the work of global leaders from the consumer electronics, IT and content creation industries and will enable consistent and reliable delivery of Ultra HD content to the rapidly growing number of Ultra HD households, expected to […]
Storage solutions specialist WD has unveiled its My Passport Cinema Ultra-HD movie storage device, which it says is an easier and faster way to organise, store and enjoy HD digital movies and TV shows – including new releases in up to full 4K resolution with high dynamic range (HDR) – on Samsung SUHD TVs and […]
BT Sport might be winning this particular 4K/Ultra-HD battle, but will it win the long-term war? The launch on August 2nd of BT’s 4K channel was no ‘blue moon’ but the opening salvo in what might be a long-drawn out scrap for viewer loyalty. Sky had its annual end-of-year results event on July 29th and […]
BT Media & Broadcast – BT Group’s international media services enterprise business – has confirmed that it will be delivering BT Sport’s new 4K Champions League sports content. The news follows BT Sport’s announcement in July that it will be launching the first live sports Ultra HD channel in Europe, BT Sport Ultra HD. The […]
According to the worldwide TV market report from Futuresource Consulting, 4K TV shipments are expected to grow by 147 per cent in 2015, despite an overall 2 per cent fall in TV sales. Global TV sales rose in 2014 by 3 per cent to reach 235 million units, with trade value up to $94 billion. […]
High Dynamic Range (HDR) is an extremely hot topic, and is the Holy Grail being sought by content producers, high-end broadcasters and the TV consumer electronics industry. They all see HDR as a highly desirable next step for Ultra-HD transmissions. The IBC technology show has recognised the importance of HDR by awarding its 2015 Conference […]
Harmonic, a specialist in video delivery infrastructure, has announced that Japanese cable TV operator EHIME CATV has deployed Harmonic’s Electra X3 advanced media processor to support a trial of the country’s first live, full-frame 4K Ultra HD channel. Utilising the Electra X3 media processor to encode UHD content using the HEVC Main 10 codec, EHIME […]
Sky’s ground-breaking ‘Project Ethan’ set-top box is ready to be announced shortly, according to widespread media reports over the weekend. The UK’s Sunday Telegraph said the unit, now dubbed the SkyQ box, will enable users to record four channels at the same time and – at long last – permit subscribers to transfer some programming […]
Ultra HD programming is expected to see strong take-up rates globally, with failure to invest now will mean a failure to tap into its growing premium revenues, according to Alan Crisp, Analyst at satellite industry market research and consulting services firm NSR. Writing in NSR’s ‘Bottom Line’ Blog, Crisp says