IBC 2012, Amsterdam (iTers News) -It seems to be not long before consumers will watch life-like 4K contents on a 8 million pixel-stuff native ultra definition 4K TV screen.
Research works on HEVC, ,or highly efficient video codec standard, as well as AVC intra 444 are coming closer to an end, setting its sight on the roll-out of the first version of the much-anticipated 4K video and audio compression technologies for 2013.
4K cinema cameras are in abundance, including F-65, NEX-FS700E from Sony, GY-HMQ10 from JVC, and Epic and Scarlet X from Red.
Movie studios in Hollywood are filming many of 4K movies, too. Cinema theaters, or box offices are already screening 4K movies.
At stake today is when and who to first deliver the 4K movies, broadcast programs, and documentaries into homes.
As Katsunori Yamanouchi, head of Sony Professional Solution Europe puts it, Sony has been a driving force behind 4K, as the consumer electronics giant has lined up a complete list of 4K product offerings from 4K cinema cameras to 4K cinema projectors.
As the race is on for control of 4K home TV market, Sony Corp. is trying to turn its early leads in cinema and pubic 4k market to its advantage in home 4K TV market.
Since we started shipping F-65 4k camera earlier this year, it has gotten into action over 30 major movies like Oblivion starring Tom Cruise. There are over 12,500 cinema screen equipped with Sony SXRD 4K cinema projectors. This is what we have done so far with (4K movie ecosystem). The next stage of 4K is how to bring this beauty, said Katsunori Yamanouchi.
Added he, This has already started with the launch of 4K home projector in early 2012 and Sony 84-inch 4K Bravia TV at IFA2012 in Berlin, Germany.
The early foray into home 4K market has huge implications for Sony, who has been gradually fading on the background in global TV market.
4K on Astra satellite
The head-start in just fledgling, but potentially huge home 4K TV market will give Sony an unparalleled opportunity to seize back control of worldwide TV market from market leader Samsung Electronics.
Sony demonstrates how the company is better prepared than others in delivering a whole 4K ecosystem by jointly test-running a real-time 4K satellite transmitting service with satellite operator SES here in IBC 2012
Using its Astra 3B low-bit satellite, SES is live-shooting, and up-linking 4K content in Betzdorf of Luxembourg , and then encoding and transmitting it via satellite at data rate of 50Mbps, or megabits per second, to a 4K receiver setup at IBC to display it on Sonys 84-inch 4K Bravia TV.
SES and Sony use DVB-S3, or digital video satellite S3 technology standard and H.264-based AVC, advanced video coding compress technology to transmit it at a data rate of 50Mbps.
50Mbps data rate with AVC
With a next generation of HEVC compression technology available next year, both of the companies plan to reduce the data rate to 20Mbps, similar to that of MPEG 2 HD compression to relieve possible bandwidth crunches.
The more data the compression technology encodes, at the lower data rate it can transmit, occupying less bandwidth.
With Sonys F-65 4K cameras, 4K home projector and a 84-inch 4K Bravia TV, we can deliver 4K satellite broadcasting service into home sooner than you expect, SES said.
SES S.A. is a low-orbit satellite service operator in Luxembourg that operates a fleet of 51 geostationary satellites. It is operating more than 1,300 HD satellite channels.
Sony plans to roll out the 84-inch 4K Bravia TV by year-end.
