4K’s appeal extends beyond sports, say experts

While Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. are getting the ball rolling on 4K broadcasting in Canada with a heavy emphasis on sports, others feel food, nature, music videos and outdoor adventure programming are also the kinds of content that would work well in ultra-high definition. Chris Knight, CEO at Ottawa-based Gusto TV, said in a phone interview that the kind of food programming his company is involved in — if shot and produced properly — can result in extremely defined, crisp and beautiful imagery that penetrates the viewer, not just on a visual level, but on a physiological level. “Food is a very unique genre for television in that if I do my job properly, I can make you hungry,” Knight said. “And hunger is a physiological reaction where your pupils dilate, your mouth waters and your stomach grumbles.” Gusto TV has so far has sold around 80 hours of 4K content in about 30 countries, Knight said, adding that demand for ultra-high definition content has grown exponentially compared to about a year ago. Now “4K matured in markets in Germany, Japan and Korea,” and there’s a “demand for more programming.” This week, Gusto TV announced that its original show, A is for Apple, has been sold to South Korea's UMAX, which is known as being world's the first dedicated 4K channel. Knight added that Gusto TV made a strategic decision last year to produce all its content in 4K, even though most Canadians have yet to adopt the technology required to watch it. “By producing all our content this way, we’ve future-proofed everything,” Knight said. “Right now, we are making a lot of money selling shows internationally where the demand is extremely high. And when the opportunity to sell in Canada is there, we will sell it here. “It’s going to take a while for it to really mature in Canada. … and it will pick up in Canada. Sports in media lends itself because it’s live, it’s easy to do and it’s pretty stunning. But as markets mature … eventually I can tell you right now there will be a high demand for 4K content … because you’re going to eventually want more content apart from sports that’s in 4K.” On Monday Rogers said during a press event on 4K in Toronto that live sports will drive the growth in 4K consumption. It plans on producing 500 hours of content in the coming year, with 300 hours of sports content that includes all 81 home Toronto Blue Jays games and 20 NHL games this year, and 200 hours of other productions. On the same day, Bell announced its new 4K Whole Home PVR was now available to its Fibe TV customers in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec City, and that content that it was making available in 4K would include a NBA basketball games as well as NHL hockey games involving the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators. Blue Ant Media Inc. has a niche in producing wildlife and nature documentaries in 4K. Vanessa Case, its executive vice-president of content, said in a phone interview that creating this type of content is “certainly different from sports as it is an evergreen content," and that "it’s a very rich format when you look at it; its imagery allows for it to look beautiful. … You can embrace the nature and the beauty of the wildlife and the outdoors much more than in a quick live sporting event that has a lot of action and movement.” Duncan Stewart, director of research for technology in Canada at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd., said in a phone interview that, beyond sports, content like music videos or outdoor-adventure programs are among the types of content also making headway into the 4K market. “For example, Mumford & Sons and their famous song I Will Follow, they have a concert video of that. … You can watch it in 4K and, if you’ve got the right monitor, it’s stunning,” Duncan said. Stewart said it’s easier to see the difference between HD and 4K on a smaller set rather than one that is 60 inches or so. He also noted that many people are consuming “bite-sized” content, or content that would be three to five minutes in length, and mostly watched on smaller monitors, such a laptops, desktops or tablets. “Content creators are beginning to create content with the knowledge that people are watching on smaller sets,” Stewart said. “And one of the things that will jump out is not sports, but sort of adventure-type video ... where you wouldn’t want to watch two hours of it, but two or three minutes of it. “It would also make sense ," he added. "You have in your kitchen. … You can put up a recipe on the screen. … It would make total sense.” Emily Taylor, senior analyst at International Data Corp., said in a phone interview that because more players are future proofing and creating 4K content from the get-go, it is easier for consumers to have a reason to purchase the technology required. “I really think to show off capabilities of 4K … it’s the idea of immersive experience and special features, it’s always going to be about the story and story telling,” Taylor said. “We’re seeing Rogers talk about it with sports with fast sequences, lots of motion, they’re really showing that side of it. But the other capabilities can also be leveraged into other things, like food network-types of shows, or other shows where people want to see the nuances of the food.” She added that the adoption of 4K TV sets in the Canadian market is growing, mainly because of the drop in prices. During the press event Monday, Scott Moore, president of Sportsnet at Rogers, indicated that it was possible in two years that Rogers would fully be able to produce content in 4K to for its customers. But when asked how long it would take for all broadcasters to fully produce and show content in ultra high-definition quality, Taylor added “we’re probably looking in the next five to 10 years. Arguably, its going to take quite a bit of time for broadcasters to make that full change to 4K TV, and we see that now with some of the initiatives that are being launched. But even with sports, not all of them are being shown in 4K.” — With reporting by Shruti Shekar at sshekar@thewirereport.ca and editing by Derek Abma at dabma@thewirereport.ca

4K’s appeal extends beyond sports, say experts

Broadcast | January 22, 2016

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us