Delivering 4K without infrastructure investments
By the end of 2015, it was clear that the time for 4K had arrived. Now, talk is turning to the implementation of a ‘UHD Premium’ standard that builds upon the resolution of 4K, transitioning UHD from the end-goal to a primary requirement for image quality moving forward. This industry sentiment follows developments in 2015 including Netflix and Amazon’s commitment to streaming 4K content, increasing consumer exposure through UHD editions of popular series such as House of Cards, the decreasing cost of 4K TVs, and the underlying technological developments that have made 4K a realistic and affordable proposition.
However, while confidence in 4K is assured, there are many providers that are yet to lay the groundwork for UHD distribution. With 4K on its way to becoming an essential consumer demand, its absence in a provider’s overall proposition is likely to be judged harshly by viewers looking for the most immersive experience. Consequently, in 2016 we expect UHD delivery to become the main battle within the TV industry, resulting in increased consumer loyalty for services offering the best 4K content catalogues.
The primary hurdle to 4K for service providers remains considerations over distribution costs, bandwidth restrictions and mobile and internet data caps, which impact production, distribution and in the latter case, the consumer’s ability to stream. With 4K consuming between 10Mbps and 18Mbps, rather than the approximate 2.7Mbps that HD requires, these are legitimate concerns.
Traditionally, providers would need to increase their own infrastructure investment, or depending on the format of delivery, rely on wider telecommunications investment, to make the move from HD to UHD.
With these challenges in mind, why is our acceptance of 4K as an imperative offering so widespread? The answer is that a number of providers have already demonstrated that these obstacles can be overcome, and have paved the way towards mainstream adoption. Recent developments in compression technologies have demonstrated that UHD can be delivered without requiring investments in additional infrastructure. This shows that 4K is now well within the reach of broadcasters and SVOD providers currently delivering HD.
While UHD is 4 times the resolution of HD content, next generation codecs, such as our PERSEUS technology, have been designed to transmit higher quality data and video to be transmitted over existing networks and workflows, enabling UHD at HD, HD at SD and SD at Sub-Audio bit-rates, significantly reducing bandwidth requirements. In addition, the solution can be integrated with off the shelf hardware, keeping infrastructure costs to a minimum.
Third-party testing has shown that PERSEUS® uses up to 50% less processor power than H.264 and offers even greater power savings with respect to H.265/HEVC. It is designed to compress almost all types of data and video, with applications spanning SVoD, broadcast, and mobile streaming and is future-proofed for adoption of new standards, including a UHD Premium Standard, 8K and Virtual Reality. Its recent application in partnership with Mediapro’s for the very first UHD broadcast of the El Clásico game between Real Madrid and Barcelona has confirmed that even live events could be delivered in 4K without picture degradation.
Additionally, a trial with leading UK telecommunications provider EE last year demonstrated that 4K streaming over 4G networks in congested and remote areas was possible. The EE trial had perfect performance showing that technology can deliver on the consumer demand for immersive and multi-platform video experiences, opening the door to higher quality streaming over mobile devices.
The enhanced consumer offering and bandwidth reductions gains this technology enables should provide strong motivation for content providers to reconsider what they can achieve within their current environment. Consumers already expect 4K to become a core element of all their future TV services, whether broadcast, OTT/VoD or time-shifted. By reducing the costs to deliver UHD to the masses, we help service providers turn 4K into a global reality on all devices on over any network.
About the Writer
Fabio Murra is SVP Product & Marketing at V-Nova, where he drives the definition and launch of new solutions for the digital television & media market. With over 17 years of broadcast and telecoms experience, Fabio has been heavily involved in both the design and deployment of cutting-edge solutions across the entire media and television delivery chain, from news and sports gathering, through delivery networks, to consumer homes. Fabio is an experienced product marketeer and holds three degrees: a Dottore in Electronic Engineering from Padua University, Italy, a Master in Engineering Science from the University of Cork, Ireland and a Marketing degree from Winchester University, UK. Fabio was three times part of a team awarded a Technology & Engineering Emmy® Award from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
About V-Nova
In 2015, V-Nova demonstrated the commercial realities of 4K in a number of trials and high-profile events including the very first UHD broadcast of the "El Clásico" game between Real Madrid and Barcelona. This performance was enabled by V-Nova’s PERSEUS technology which delivers compression gains two to three times that of legacy codecs such as HEVC. Its successful trial with EE delivering 4K video over 4G networks in highly congested and remote areas further demonstrated the largely untapped possibilities of 4K distribution using advanced codecs and the possibilities of 4K in 2016.
V-Nova’s partnerships which include Alcatel-Lucent, Sky Italia, Imagine Communications, and NVIDIA reflect growing industry demand for compression technologies that can dramatically improve the efficiency of UHD video delivery.
For more information, visit http://www.v-nova.com/en/index.html.
