NHK is Noncommittal Whether It Will Propose 8K For ATSC 3.0
NHK, the world’s biggest 8K advocate with plans to begin Super Hi-Vision broadcasts in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is noncommittal whether it will propose 8K for ATSC 3.0, a Tokyo-based spokeswoman for the Japanese broadcaster told us by email. On whether NHK plans to propose 8K to ATSC’s “S34-1” ad hoc group, which is drafting specifications on ATSC 3.0’s video component, “we can’t say whether NHK is proposing or not at this stage, I'm afraid,” said the spokeswoman.
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The issue of 8K created somewhat of a stir at the recent “ATSC 3.0 Boot Camp” conference when S34-1’s chairman, Alan Stein, Technicolor’s vice president-technology, said 8K was on his ad hoc group’s future “radar,” but that no one, not even NHK, had stepped forward to propose it for ATSC 3.0 (CD May 9 p18). Though NHK representatives did make what Stein called a “contribution about what they plan to do” on 8K, S34-1 hasn’t considered that “a proposal to consider,” he said. Of 8K and other future technologies bandied about, Stein said: “A lot of times we hear interesting things but no one makes a contribution on them, and if no one makes a contribution for the technology that they would like, it’s not going to get into the standard."
Speaker after speaker at the conference emphasized that ATSC 3.0, even after it’s ratified as a 4K-centric final standard late next year, will be “extensible” to adapt to future technology enhancements, including possibly 8K (CD May 8 p16). Those constant reminders were made because “just as the original ATSC standard proved to be flexible and was amended and adapted to meet the changing needs of broadcasters (such as the addition of mobile digital TV functionality), we believe the proposed ATSC 3.0 standard needs to be similarly extensible for new technologies,” ATSC President Mark Richer told us by email. “Mobile capability will be an integrated capability of 3.0 and the Physical Layer will be far more flexible than the original DTV Standard."
With the existing “ATSC 1.0” DTV system, “we relied on MPEG Transport to provide that flexibility and it’s worked well,” Richer told us when asked whether the repeated reminders of ATSC 3.0 extensibility were a reaction to those who regard ATSC 3.0 as being set in stone once the standard is completed. “For ATSC 3.0, the backbone will be Internet Protocol based, which gives us a tremendous ability to work in either broadcast or Internet-based environments. An IP-based system, by nature, will be extensible. It’s not a reaction, it’s a requirement for an effective standard."
Another often-repeated theme at the “Boot Camp” conference was the plea for more participants to get involved in the ATSC 3.0 standards-setting process. Richer told us this was a proactive measure to build the most effective standard possible, not a reaction to lack of participation. “The work now underway with ATSC 3.0 will set a broadcast TV standard that should endure for some time, just as the current ATSC 1.0 standard has served us well for two decades,” Richer said. “We believe that it’s very important to involve as many stakeholders as possible -- and in particular TV broadcasters. Fortunately, ATSC has recently added several new broadcaster members to the long list of organizations who recognize the critical work of standards setting, and we're delighted to now include Meredith, Hearst Television and also the Pearl TV broadcast consortium to our membership. They join the list of many other member companies who are making important contributions to our work. The request for participation is constant, in virtually everything that we do.”