Ultra High Definition is located in Spain at the level of the European market leaders

The Ultra HD conference that SES held in London has confirmed the good momentum of a technology that is gaining ground among Spanish viewers.

Between April 2018 and April 2019, a 44.8% of televisions sold in Spain had technology Ultra High Definition (UHD or 4K). This is a data Gfk presented during the annual conference of SES in London, where different representatives of the industry involved in the development of this technology (program creators, manufacturers, retailers, content transmission managers) made it clear that Ultra HD continues to grow.

Spain is thus placed at the level of other European countries such as France (with 50.1% of sales in the mentioned period), Italy (41.8%), the United Kingdom (53.8%) and Germany (58.4%). German viewers currently lead a market that, although it is not growing at the speed at which High Definition did, is maintaining a constant rise, unlike other audiovisual technologies that have not penetrated the public on a mass scale.

To confirm this solidity, Thomas Wrede, vice president of new technologies and standards at SES, explained that, "compared to the last two years, there is a much greater degree of confidence regarding the availability of 4K UHD content. Production workflows have also improved. Fifteen months ago, some voices in the industry asked: "Will UHD suffer the same fate as 3D technology?" Today we can say that the answer is no: UHD is here and fully established. "It's good news."

Among the reasons to understand this progression, the participants in the conferences spoke of the positive contribution of the viewers themselves, who demand with greater intensity to be able to enjoy their television 100% thanks to UHD quality, a demand that has influenced an increase in content production, with fiction and sports at the forefront. The knock-on effect of audiovisual platforms – whether linear TV, OTT or Video On Demand – on their users has also played its tricks.

8K, next step

At the beginning of September, coinciding with the celebration of IFA Berlin, SES launched a television channel capable of broadcasting content in 8K resolution and free-to-air through the 19.2º East orbital position. It is an example of the satellite's capabilities to incorporate increasingly greater bandwidths and guarantee excellence in the transmission of this content.

As noted in London Chris Johns, chief engineer of Sky UK, and based on research from IHS Market, 63% of televisions sold in Western Europe in the fourth quarter of 2018 were 4K displays. But Johns raised other questions: "Is 4K the limit or should we take the next step and go towards 8K? How far can we go to obtain a return on investment? Any technology must provide a perfect experience for the customer, it is not advisable to put too much pressure on the consumer," he added.

In the analysis of the following standard, Graeme Stanley, commercial director of Insight TV (channel specialized in action sports, lifestyle and entertainment) alluded to the impact that 8K can have on the genesis of audiovisual creativity since "the eye needs to capture more details, so long takes will be common, influencing the narrative."