LAS VEGAS
The future of 4K Ultra HD TV is among the most-anticipated topics at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. Updates are expected here about standards for improved picture quality, as well as the availability of more content coming on 4K Blu-ray Discs and increased streaming options.
But this week will also mark the first major public display of 4K UHD over-the-air broadcasts, as two Las Vegas television stations will transmit 4K video that will be shown on UHD displays populating the convention show floor.
TV makers LG and Samsung are each sponsoring separate local 4K broadcasts — independent station KHMP and NBC-affiliated KSNV, respectively — that will be viewable on the massive CES show floor.
It's the first public demonstrations of the in-development Advanced Television System Committee's ATSC 3.0 transmission system. ATSC 3.0 is expected to allow for not only the broadcast of improved quality 4K Ultra HD TV signals, but also mobile TV and interactive content.
"We’re on target to finalize the entire suite of ATSC 3.0 standards for next-gen television broadcasting this year," said ATSC President Mark Richer in a statement.
Once, HDTV served as the Holy Grail of television. But 4K UHD with a technology called high dynamic range (HDR), which brings improved contrast and color saturation to 4K UHD content, makes "the television experience so much more lifelike, especially on larger screens," said Peter Fannon, vice president of technology policy at Panasonic Corp. of North America.
And 4K over-the-air broadcasting would give broadcasters "the chance to compete and succeed in an ever more complex world," he said.
Research firm IHS Technology expects U.S. shipments of 4K TVs to double to 12 million this year.
Also adding momentum to 4K UHD will be updates about HDR standards, additional movie studio support for 4K Blu-ray Discs and an expected announcement of at least one satellite TV provider delivering 24-hour 4K content, says Richard Doherty, research director at The Envisioneering Group.
With more than one HDR technology -- Dolby Vision -- and an evolving level of copy protection in HDMI inputs, consumer confusion could be a result. Doherty hopes that the industry consolidates standards and makes it easy for consumers. "I think we are going to hear about consolidation," he said.
"There is somewhat of the industry coming together," said Tim Alessi, director of new product development for home entertainment products at LG Electronics USA. "The whole idea is not just more pixels, but better pixels."
However, all these developments don't ensure success in 4K, says Dan Rayburn, analyst with research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan and executive vice president of StreamingMedia.com. "Right now, everybody is talking about technology and nobody is talking about business models," he said.
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