[espnjason]

Courtesy of advanced-television.com via Google Alerts.

Original article here

DirecTV will adopt Ultra-HDTV. DirecTV is already planning its future spectrum needs in readiness for U-HDTV. Philip Goswitz, DirecTV's SVP/Space and Communications/R&D, speaking at the Satellite 2012 event in Washington, said "4,000 and 8,000-line services are great for the satellite industry, and will ensure that satellite broadcasting continues to distinguish itself for image quality of service" .....

.... "At DirecTV we see a couple of things happening. First, our subscribers are migrating away from Ku-band, and upgrading themselves to Ka-band and its HDTV services. In four or five years, our Ku-band [transmissions] could end. We are also developing the so-called Reverse Band for DBS services, and these are on our Road Map for future international services. 4000-line is exciting to us because of its image quality, and the potential for glasses-free 3D."

 

[AquiringSat]

That's pretty Cool! Glad to see DirecTV leading the way! Of course, I wouldn't expect anything else

 

[cypherx]

Cue quarterly Ultra HD Channel Anticipation Threads in 3... 2... 1...


:hurah:

 

[fireponcoal]

Just read this.. Holy cow.

Capturing video in UHDTV format needs a lot of bandwidth. A 20 minute video could take up to 4 Terabytes of data. There are only 3 known cameras as of today that can capture and store that amount of data. Needless to say, our current broadcasting infrastructure is still incapable of meeting the requirements of UHDTV.

 

[LameLefty]

Just read this.. Holy cow.

Capturing video in UHDTV format needs a lot of bandwidth. A 20 minute video could take up to 4 Terabytes of data. There are only 3 known cameras as of today that can capture and store that amount of data. Needless to say, our current broadcasting infrastructure is still incapable of meeting the requirements of UHDTV.

I have filmmaker friends already shooting in 4K and 5X formats, downsampling as needed for final delivery.

 

[Drew2k]

Cue the "Ultra-HD Anticipation Thread" ...

 

[kevinturcotte]

I KNEW they'd do this eventually. Some FUN questions though. How much horsepower is it going to take for a receiver to be able to record 5 (Or maybe even 8) UHD channels at once, play back something already recorded, download something from on demand, and stream content to RVU clients?! Also, are large enough hard drives going to be available? 4k takes up 4 times as much space as 1080p, so we'll need at LEAST a 4TB drive to match the hours the HR34 can deliver. 8TBs would be even better! And how much is this beast going to cost? lol

 

[LameLefty]

I KNEW they'd do this eventually. Some FUN questions though. How much horsepower is it going to take for a receiver to be able to record 5 (Or maybe even 8) UHD channels at once, play back something already recorded, download something from on demand, and stream content to RVU clients?! Also, are large enough hard drives going to be available? 4k takes up 4 times as much space as 1080p, so we'll need at LEAST a 4TB drive to match the hours the HR34 can deliver. 8TBs would be even better! And how much is this beast going to cost? lol

Ask all these questions again in 3 - 5 years when the plans are more solid than vague announcements at industry conferences.

 

[zeus]

This is great news! I'm guessing with an expedited launch schedule DirecTV should have Ultra-HD in place just in time for the ribbon cutting on our glorious moon colony - which coincidentally enough will be open to great fanfare a mere days after we are finally able to watch Doctor Who - Day of the Moon in HD on BBCA.

 

[Alan Gordon]

Capturing video in UHDTV format needs a lot of bandwidth. A 20 minute video could take up to 4 Terabytes of data. There are only 3 known cameras as of today that can capture and store that amount of data. Needless to say, our current broadcasting infrastructure is still incapable of meeting the requirements of UHDTV.

A Hollywood insider has been speaking about this on a thread on Blu-ray.com.

It seems like the future is coming!

~Alan

 

[harsh]

You have to wonder if DIRECTV is really committed to getting rid of Ku long-term. This part of the statement makes me suspicious of other information offered.

The fact that nobody ever seems to pin down what flavor of 4K they're talking about leaves me wondering if they're even on the same page.

I think it is more likely that DIRECTV will ultimately drop Ka in favor of Ku and RDBS that would seem to bring lower power requirements and better atmospheric penetration. They may want to keep Ka for LIL, but Ka doesn't seem like the right tool for CONUS.

 

[I WANT MORE]

Cue the "Ultra-HD Lite Anticipation Thread.

 

[Herdfan]

Now maybe I just don't understand the concept, but can our eyes even resolve that kind of detail? I mean unless you are looking at 100"+ screens, I'm not sure we would even notice.

 

[Steve]

Now maybe I just don't understand the concept, but can our eyes even resolve that kind of detail? I mean unless you are looking at 100"+ screens, I'm not sure we would even notice.

+1. I've got 20/20 vision, and I can't tell the difference between a well-calibrated 480p ED display and a calibrated 1080p HD display from normal viewing distances, sitting 8'-10' away.

I believe these "advancements" are driven by hardware manufacturers and the movie studios, simply to get folks to buy new TV's and repurchase movies every few years..

The only advantage I can see to upping resolution like this is for specialized use, like medical and scientific imaging, where users will be looking for superb visual detail while seated a foot or two away from the display. Just my .02.

 

[spartanstew]

Now maybe I just don't understand the concept, but can our eyes even resolve that kind of detail? I mean unless you are looking at 100"+ screens, I'm not sure we would even notice.

Yes, they can. The difference wasn't night and day when I saw 4K, but it was distinguishable from 1080p.

And screen size doesn't matter, it's the screen size vs seating distance ratio that matters.

 

[P Smith]

As I understand the "and 8,000-line" is totally fictional reference.

So far NHK has this:

UHDTV's main tentative specifications:[3]

Number of pixels: 7,680 × 4,320

 

[Alan Gordon]

+1. I've got 20/20 vision, and I can't tell the difference between a well-calibrated 480p ED display and a calibrated 1080p HD display from normal viewing distances, sitting 8'-10' away.

I have very good vision, and I can tell the difference between a 720p TV and a 1080p TV from 30 feet away.

I believe these "advancements" are driven by hardware manufacturers and the movie studios, simply to get folks to buy new TV's and repurchase movies every few years..

The CE industry is rarely driven by the companies fulfilling a need...

However, just because they're motives aren't selfless doesn't mean that there is not a benefit to the consumers.

~Alan

 

[kevinturcotte]

+1. I've got 20/20 vision, and I can't tell the difference between a well-calibrated 480p ED display and a calibrated 1080p HD display from normal viewing distances, sitting 8'-10' away.

I believe these "advancements" are driven by hardware manufacturers and the movie studios, simply to get folks to buy new TV's and repurchase movies every few years..

The only advantage I can see to upping resolution like this is for specialized use, like medical and scientific imaging, where users will be looking for superb visual detail while seated a foot or two away from the display. Just my .02.

Not sure what my glasses bring my eye sight up to, but I can tell the difference between 480p and 720p from about 10 feet away. Haven't really looked up close at 1080p yet, but will probably try it now.

 

[dah_sab]

This is great news! I'm guessing with an expedited launch schedule DirecTV should have Ultra-HD in place just in time for the ribbon cutting on our glorious moon colony - which coincidentally enough will be open to great fanfare a mere days after we are finally able to watch Doctor Who - Day of the Moon in HD on BBCA.

This is the more likely scenario. It took an age to switch to HDTV, & it's still not done.

 

[P Smith]

This is the more likely scenario. It took an age to switch to HDTV, & it's still not done.

It's a different point - TV/players' manufacturers don't want to stagnate with 1080p equipment; they need new idea to spiraling out... money, money.