5G Broadcasters

What 5G could mean for broadcasters.

10:28 21 August 2017

5G is the next generation mobile network that is expected to dramatically improve response time, provide enough capacity for Internet of Things (IoT) and pave the way for a slew of new exciting technologies. 5G is also expected to play a crucial role in broadcasting. 

 

In a study conducted by Huawei and BBC R&D, researchers were able to demonstrate the technology’s capabilities in this area. Ultra HD 4K video is streamed to a mobile device over an enhanced outdoor network.

 

“The demonstration shows the capabilities 5G could hold for bandwidth-hungry applications. It provides much higher quality, less compressed images than 4G/LTE, streamed to a mobile device or television.”

 

Grass Valley Vice President for Live Production Mark Hilton said: “We see the opportunities in improving distribution to the end user. For example, 5G could boost spectral density to support highly populated urban areas with better cell coverage for video streaming.”

 

Steve Plunkett, CTO for broadcast and media services at Ericsson, added:

 

“As our mobile devices increase in resolution and morph into AR and VR displays, they require a lot more bandwidth and low latency. A compressed 4K 360-degree live broadcast delivered to a VR-capable device will require between 300 Mb/s and 600 Mb/s for a high quality experience, and latency of 5ms to allow seamless stream switching as the viewer looks around.

 

“5G can deliver this, with latency as low as 1ms and end-user bandwidth as high as 10 Gb/s, alongside much greater cell capacity and density,”