Traveling half way round the world is always a great way to get a different viewpoint. One can read about things or watch a video, but these activities are never the same as being there and interacting with people face-to-face. Thousands of attendees from broadcasters to cable operators and all the vendors necessary to capture, produce and distribute video from lens to eyeball packed this past week’s 2013 International Broadcast Conference, in Amsterdam. It was a great place to get a high-definition vision of the future.
The Dawn of Ultra HD
The dawn of Ultra HD is upon us and the slow sunset of HD has begun was an underlying theme to the 2013 IBC show. Ultra HD, also known as 4k, was everywhere at this world-renowned video and broadcast industry. From production equipment to post production to transport to displays, all the elements are in place for Ultra HD to take-off.
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Fiber Network Powering Broadband & Now Video
The juxtaposition of a fiber optic cable on a dirt road paints the picture of many parts of rural America and glimpses of the stark contrast in infrastructures can be seen in the above video. With 1,300 miles of recently deployed fiber and an average of 2.5 customers per mile, United Electric Cooperative is providing broadband to its formerly unserved members. Sparked by a $21.2M RUS broadband stimulus award, United Electric continues to turn-up new customers.
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Some Tweets and Short Thoughts:
- I can think of some interesting service provider apps for this type of device. Don’t fret, me singing isn’t one of them.
- The next generation of #livesports? Selling out the Staples Center in an hour is impressive & the $1M prize significant.
- So, it looks like Comcast does not include a battery with a cable/telephony modem (presumably upgraded to DOCSIS 3.0); batteries are an extra $35 charge. They let the consumer choose whether he has battery back-up. Will know more in 4 to 6 weeks when my shiny new modem arrives. Amazing that the CPUC approved a battery free telephony modem.
The Korner – The Jet Set VOD Service
One of the oft-discussed points at IBC 2013 was the potential for Ultra HD as a way to drive early theatrical releases. Of course, this would require extremely robust security and, probably, per stream watermarking. As importantly, there is the business issue of studios not wanting to cannibalize their theatrical release window revenue (e.g. Movie Theater owners want to protect their revenue stream).
The conversations about early theatrical release reminded me of an interview from earlier this year that, some of you may have already seen on one of the convention hotel channels where ViodiTV has appeared in 2013. Ultra HD would make a compelling delivery mechanism for this early release.
Jason Peng’s company, PRIMA Cinema, has identified a market segment that could become significant new source of revenue to the studios, while barely impacting their existing streams. Based on Peng’s per movie revenue and market size projections, the total revenue for targeting the “jet owner” crowd has the potential to be in the hundreds of millions.
PRIMA Cinema is already delivering its $35,000 set-top and $500 per title “better than Blu-Ray” movies, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they are one of the first ones out with an Ultra HD offering to the consumer. This interview and the screenshots from their demonstration, provide a glimpse of another world; a world that may be more foreign to the average Joe than is another country half way round the world.
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