January 20178 IN MY VIEW2016 was a year when disruptive technology truly came to the forefront. The onward march to ever higher resolutions is only part of the story; High Dynamic Range also adds enormously to the viewer's experience ­ some would argue providing a more compelling reason to move to 4K/UHD than just the increase in pixel count. Alongside these developments, we are beginning to see more and more applications and demands for VR (Virtual Reality) and AR (Augmented Reality). All this while there is a fundamental change taking place in consumers' viewing habits, with anywhere/anytime OTT and multiscreen viewing now taking a prominent place alongside traditional linear broadcasting. In summary, the Broadcast and Media industry is moving to adapt to an inter- connected world.The push to 4K and onto 8K in Japan for the 2020 Summer Games is moving at a rapid rate. The industry is clearly investing heavily in R&D to produce hi-res images, then to be able to store, manipulate and distribute them at a necessarily very high data rate. It is not just a competition to get higher resolution images, but also the challenge of intelligent pixels with higher dynamic range and higher frame rates.NHK unveiled a new 4K/8K `Super Hi-Vision' Ultra-HD cable decoder box at the CEATEC Japan 2016 technology show. The public broadcaster is focusing on 4K and 8K adoption in order to achieve full-scale diffusion ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games. As a result, the supply industry is developing many solutions for working with such high quality media. The capture of high resolution pictures is being tackled, with many broadcast camera suppliers launching 4K/8K cameras in 2016. However, the bottleneck is how to store and transport such large amounts of data within the studio or TV station and then onto the home for consumption. Broadcasters in Japan are starting to invest in new 4K/8K facilities to broadcast in the new formats within the next two years; Japanese broadcasters' investment in 4K/8K technology is set to increase in the coming years as a result of government stimulus. This means that local suppliers will inevitably focus on 4K/8K broadcast and media technology production. However, they must also address the changing Broadcast and Media World is Confronting Continuous ChangesBy Peter Bruce, Director, IABM APACChange is constant and the rate of change will never be so slow againconsumption habits of their end customers, who increasingly expect to view on multiple devices and on the move, and use big data as part of the workflow to optimize their offerings for each and every viewer.In the Asian and Pacific region, IABM noted the diversity of technology choices across various countries. While Japan and South Korea are focusing on higher resolution and transmission at 4K/8K, it should also be noted that only these two countries in Asia have so far achieved the analog switch off. In the other parts of the region the transition to go fully digital broadcast transmissions has been complicated by a myriad of factors including: government commitment; household finances; suppliers and broadcasters' commitment. This presents
< Page 7 | Page 9 >