February 2013 www.tvbeurope.com


TVBEurope 15 News & Analysis


in the home, ostensibly as a host for 4K content. “I hope you see 4K is not the


future, it's now and Sony is leading the way,” said chief Kazuo Hirai who said when he became CEO he made a commitment to revitalise Sony's electronics business by focusing on “digital, games and mobile.” He proudly unveiled a


prototype OLED 4K TV, one of a number of vendors to marry the two technologies. None were larger than 56-inches as


tied up with the introduction of cheap higher-resolution screens. “3D is as much a part of new


Ultra-HD sets as the power button,” said Daryl Eshun of Sony North America outside of a press conference that referenced 3D once – in sharp contrast to 2011 where Sony's booth was awash with 3D promotions. Panasonic didn't even mention 3D in its press conference but nor did it mention Ultra-HD, preferring instead to market the


years away -- although Stream TV Networks is to pump its autostereo technology into the market this year on sets made by Hisense. “There is still a very different


depth budget with autostereo screens which is significantly limited over what you can get with stereo presentation,” said Dolby's Roland Vlacicu. “But this is going to increase over time as we develop better optics and higher resolution panels.” In any case, there is a


terminal is moving beyond simple smart net connectivity to become humanised, if you take Samsung's publicity without a dose of salt. Showing S-Recommendation,


a voice controlled tech enabling the discovery of personalised content, Samsung's North American president Tim Baxter, said, “This is making your TV almost human. You can request your TV for movie selections, it acknowledges simple


“Ultra-HD is good for 3D. The industry needs cheap Ultra-HD panels since with them you get a full 1080 HD resolution on each eye which will drive development of autostereoscopic screens”


problems still exist in the manufacturing process with the OLED substrate but they can be manufactured as curved which, according to Samsung provides depth for a more “life-like viewing experience” and an immersive panorama effect not possible with flat panels, something apparent on an astonishing video wall dominating LG's stand.


3D's fate linked with 4K Reports of 3D's demise are as over-exaggerated as the hype surrounding its introduction three years ago. It's true that TV vendors are no longer using 3D to sell flat panels but that doesn't mean 3D has fallen off the agenda. Indeed its fate seems


capabilities of its Viera smart home system.


“The notion that 4K is a


replacement for 3D is a myth that needs to be countered,” argued Buzz Hayes, stereoscopic producer in a conference session organised by 3D evangelists The International 3D Society. Ken Lowe, founder and VP engineering Vizio, agreed: “Ultra-HD is good for 3D. The industry needs cheap Ultra-HD panels since with them you get a full 1080 HD resolution on each eye which will drive development of autostereoscopic screens.” Dolby, one of the leading glasses-free developers, believes a commercially viable glasses- free display is realistically three


consensus that autostereo is not the holy grail for 3DTV's longevity. Instead the format's success has to be about growing the volume and quality of content. Jim Chabin, president of the IDS, said, “in 10 years, the period we are now in will be seen as a time of 3D infrastructure rollout into homes. In short, what the marketplace is feeling now can be best characterised as growing pains."


The revolution will be television CES2013 seemed a particularly vibrant year for innovations in TV design. Not only are there changes in form factor and pixel count but the once dumb


SKY TRIALS RUGBY REFCAM


By David Fox Ken Lowe, Vizio


commands and understands natural language and full sentences and it even replies.” BK Yoon, Samsung's CE


president, said TV is evolving into a product that will “listen, see and do what you want without ever touching the remote control.” Innovation in TV design are


emerging despite, or because of, a fall in global spend on CE products in 2012, with TV sales themselves on the decline worldwide. CEA and analysts GfK figures suggest the world market for CE devices will reach U$1.1 trillion by end of 2013, rising 4%, after dipping by 1% from U$1069bn to U$1058bn between 2011 and 2012.


Sky Sports has started trials of a miniature RefCam for rugby union, to give a different angle on the action. It has broadcast one trial, with an SD camera, and tested an HD version in a live English Championship match from Nottingham on 27 January. The set up involves “a lot of


bespoke kit, because the aim was always to make it as light as possible, because we had to get the referees to agree to it,” explained Sky Sport’s Senior Director of Rugby Union, Sam Foskett. The very first trial of the chest-


mounted RefCam wasn’t for broadcast, and was just a match played at Harrow School to see if the system worked and get feedback from the referee wearing the system. The experiment was a success,


but as part of a full HD outside broadcast for the RFU Championship match (the level beneath England’s Premiership) the difference in picture quality with the images from the small SD camera was noticeable.


This article first appeared on our Fast Turnaround TV enewsletter. To subscribe to Fast Turnaround TV or any of our other enewsletters, just click on Newsletters at the top of www.tvbeurope.com


Cinegy Air The future of broadcast automation and playout


Reliable, scalable, affordable, future-proof playout solution Local and remote operation via TCP/IP network connection Output via SD/HD SDI and/or MPEG2 / H.264 streaming Scalable from local channel-in-a-box to enterprise playout control center with hundreds of channels


Mix and match resolutions and codecs with VANC support Multi-channel audio support and subtitling Logo insertion and optional CG and channel branding Surround sound support (e.g. Dolby Digital or Dolby-E) Loudness normalization option


BXF traffic integration and switcher control Uses commodity IT-hardware from HP, IBM, etc. Supports SDI cards from AJA, BMD, etc. Play while record. Scheduled recording. Cloud-ready! Can run in VMware, Hyper-V, etc. Open API for extensions or custom controls Turn-key solutions available through our partners Extremely affordable - call for prices!


For more information go to www.cinegy.com or contact one of our offices below: Cinegy LLC - 1101 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC 20004, USA - call: +1 202-621-2350 Cinegy GmbH - Muellerstr.27, 80469 Munich, Germany - call: +49 -89-2388 5360


cinegy


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56