Beyond HDTV – television ‘on the run’?

When is enough, enough? Surely the paint is barely dry on the signposts to HDTV? Why spend time and money looking beyond that? It will confuse the public – and quite possibly broadcast management as well. These days, surely technology evolution is in ‘dog years’. So come on, let’s start when we really need something. And by the way, did you hear about the economic downturn? The answer to the why of ‘beyond HDTV’ lies in the very, very long lead times that new television systems fundamentally need. The answer lies in making the distinction between what we might call ‘long-run’ and ‘short-run’ new systems.

The Internet is a fantastic vehicle for introducing new systems, because there is no new infrastructure needed, either for the provider or the user. We already have PCs and the Internet itself. All you need is to download software. These are ‘short-run’ new systems.

Although not a black-and-white distinction, we also need to look beyond the short-run, to systems which do need investments by the provider and user, and new delivery infrastructures. This is the ‘long-run’. It is in this category that ‘beyond HDTV ‘ lies. Any sensible person looks both to the short-run and the long-run – and understands the distinction. We should do the same, because there is always a ‘long-run’.

Today, in 2009, there are about 100 HDTV channels in Europe. But, the founding father of HDTV, Dr Fujio, had the idea for HDTV during the Tokyo Olympic Games of 1964. He thought the public should have a way of feeling they were virtually present on such great occasions. He was right, and we do. The first HDTV broadcasts (in the 1125i/60 format) were as long ago as 1984 in Japan – over twenty years ago. So, the time taken from conception of the idea to rollout of services has been, for us in Europe, over forty years. Could anyone doubt that, on this evidence, it is reasonable for us to start now looking ahead to the next step beyond HDTV?

The tests done in 2008 using the NHK Super Hi-Vision (SHV) technology were important and useful in many ways, and much of the background is given in the three articles published in this special edition of EBU Technical Review.

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