SES Platform Services, the technical services subsidiary of Astra satellite operator SES, will handle the broadcasting of Pearl.tv UHD, Europe’s first free-to-air Ultra HD channel scheduled to launch at German consumer electronics fair IFA 2015 in Berlin on September 4.
SES Platform Services will provide the HEVC encoding of the German teleshopping channel’s Ultra HD/4K live signal as well as the uplink to the Astra satellite system at 19,2° East. The Munich-based company will also prepare the TV signal and the internet stream and manage the content delivery network supplying the stream.
“We’re delighted to be launching Europe’s first free-to-air UHD channel both via satellite and the internet. UHD places specific demands on workflows in the content management, playout and encoding sectors, an area in which we’ve gained a lot of know-how over the past few years,” said Sophie Lersch, chief product officer for services at SES Platform Services. “As a result, we can now offer all services that broadcasters and content providers need in order to market and distribute their content in UHD – linear or on-demand and via satellite or the internet.”
Michael Sichler, managing director of Pearl.tv’s parent company Enstyle, added: “With the launch of Pearl.tv UHD, we’re seeking to raise the quality of our product worlds to a whole new level. SES Platform Services is the ideal partner for the preparation and playout of our TV signal as it provides us with top-quality UHD services and maximum transmission security.”
SES Platform Services has been overseeing UHD tests and showcase transmissions for Sky Deutschland since 2013, including the first-ever live broadcast of a football game based on the newly-introduced HEVC compression standard in April 2014.
The live UHD broadcast of the Linkin Park concert in November 2014 in cooperation with Samsung was another world first which SES Platform Services encoded and uplinked to the satellite.
Pearl.tv UHD will transmit on Astra on the frequency 12,344 GHz H (SR 30000, FEC 2/3).
