The DVB says the approval of the latest specification for Ultra High Definition Television, UHD-1 Phase 2, will guarantee interoperability for broadcasters and CE manufacturers.
Its approval at the 84th meeting of the DVB Steering Board means the first DVB UHD-1 Phase 2 services should be available from next year.
DVB Chairman, Peter MacAvock said “The approval of the specification is the result of enormous effort from the contributors, and further evidence of DVB’s leadership in the broadcast industry. DVB views the Phase 2 specification as a key enabler for exciting products and services.”
The specification covers various elements for the improvement of video and audio quality for broadcast TV services including High Dynamic Range (HDR) which significantly increases the contrast ratio and results in pictures with more ‘sparkle’. The DVB solution supports Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) and PQ (Perceptual Quantizer).
It also defines Higher Frame Rates (HFR), going beyond the current 50/60 Hz. HFR offers sharper images of moving objects. When it comes to audio, DVB has added the latest Next Generation Audio (NGA) schemes supporting object- or scene-based audio. These new features can be combined with HD and UHD resolutions. The specification will be published as BlueBook A157 and will be passed to ETSI for formal publication as TS 101 154 v2.3.1.
David Wood, Chair of the DVB Commercial Module for UHDTV who oversaw much of the work on the specification, commented “When they draw up the history of television, the agreement by the DVB Steering Board to the UHD-1 Phase 2 specification will surely be writ large. It marks the culmination of many years work by scores of DVB Member engineers, and is probably the tipping point for the new age of UHDTV.”
The specification involved over 30 companies and other interested parties participating through the DVBCommercial Module, the Technical Module and the Steering Board.
