Beyond HDTV technology

Many broadcasters are still in the phase of implementing HDTV (High-Definition Television) for all regular services and this activity will set the main focus in production and distribution for the upcoming years. However, the consumer and professional industries, are already promoting technologies beyond the current HDTV formats used in the broadcast domain so this paper presents an overview of existing technologies. Very soon, new consumer and professional products will enter the market with resolutions clearly beyond that of current HDTV. The ultimate aim is to give the consumer a significantly enhanced viewing experience. Broadcasters may wish to choose a future proof format and may even be forced by competition to change their format. While high frame rates offer better temporal resolution, which is good for sports and other content with high motion scenes, image formats with higher spatial resolution improve the imagery for genres such as movies, drama and documentary. Beyond HDTV, Japan´s Broadcasting Corporation NHK (Nippon Hoso Kyokai) has developed a new TV standard that will be a major advance in television broadcasting and that will create an entirely new environment, television shows. This is the next natural step forward in display technology, offering consumers an incredibly immersive viewing experience with stunning new levels of image quality. There are several up to date terms for this new standard, such as Quad HD (High Definition), UHD (Ultra High Definition), 4K (4000 horizontal pixels) or 4K UHD television.