Ultra High Definition and 8K associations worldwide, at the 4K HDR Summit 2023

• Ian Nock, Chair of the Interop Working Group and Benjamin Schwarz, Communication Chair, will be the speakers of Ultra HD Forum. Tonio Di Stefano, President of Ultra HD Forum Italia, will also be present.

• Michael Hoog, Chair of the Promotions Group, will represent the UHD Alliance at this ninth edition.

• The 8K Association will also be present again, this time with Mike Fidler, Executive Director, who will speak on “the challenges and opportunities of 8K technology”.

The 4K HDR Summit will once again count with the presence of the most relevant Ultra High Definition associations in the international scene. Ultra HD Forum, Ultra HD Forum Italy, UHD Alliance and 8K Association will discuss the present and future of 4K and 8K technology worldwide.

This ninth edition of the 4K HDR Summit will be held from November 13 to 16, in hybrid format, with the first two days in person, at the Digital Content Pole of Malaga, and the other two virtually.

Solving obstacles and accelerating UHD implementation

Ultra HD Forum is an open forum composed of a wide range of participants from the film and television ecosystem. That is why this association advocates for a consensus within the industry around common technical standards. Once again, they will be one of the protagonists of the 4K HDR Summit.

Ian Nock, Chair of the Interop Working Group, will present the point of view of the association globally, and not just focusing on the UK. The situation of countries representing other member countries such as the United States, the Netherlands and Germany will be presented.

On the other hand, Benjamin Schwarz, Communications Chair of the association, will give a global update on what the last twelve months have meant for Ultra HD Forum, and how he sees the future in France. “French public television has made a very strong commitment. France 2, the second most popular channel in France will be in 4K in full this year. They have even announced that they are going to close HD distribution in a few years, and that this will be exclusively 4K.”

Focusing on Italy, Tonio Di Stefano, President of Ultra HD Forum Italia, will participate in this ninth edition of the 4K HDR Summit. He also holds the position of Networks and Platforms Director at Rai (Radiotelevisione Italiana). Already in the last edition, he announced that the RAI 4K channel would broadcast 56 of the 64 matches of the World Cup in 4K format. He also assured that they intended “that 4K will be, from now on, the new normal, but for that we have to move for the good diffusion of technology”.

8K challenges and opportunities

Another association present at this year’s 4K HDR Summit will be the 8K Association. Mike Fidler, Executive Director, will help to understand the challenges and opportunities ahead for 8K technology, which from the outset has faced numerous challenges on its way to a compelling value proposition. From COVID and the slowing global economy to the lack of production facilities and native content, barriers have been building up that have affected its launch.

However, some positive signs are starting to be seen regarding the expansion and application of 8K, which are being driven primarily by the creative community and their continued quest for more immersive and realistic entertainment. In his keynote, Fidler will seek to provide a balanced view of the current 8K market and the potential opportunities that our industry must seize in order to take 8K to the next level.

UHD Alliance and the Filmmaker Mode

Once again, the UHD Alliance is represented by Michael Hoog, President of the Promotions Group. One of the most outstanding creations of this association is called ‘Filmmaker Mode‘. As he stated at the previous edition of the 4K HDR Summit, the partnership aimed to “preserve the aspect ratio and get the colors and frame rates right without motion interpolation, noise reduction, or having other image processing.” In short, “to enable home viewing while preserving the content as it was shot, with the support of the film community”.

The conferences of the 4K HDR Summit 2023 can be followed through Medina Media Events’ ‘The Observatory‘. On this platform, attendees will also be able to schedule video meetings with other participants and speakers, as well as visit exclusive online demos. This ninth edition will be held on 13 and 14 November, in person, at the Digital Content Hub in Malaga, and on 15 and 16 November, virtually.

The ninth edition of the 4K HDR Summit is supported by the City Council of Malaga, the National Digital Content Hub, the Digital Agency of Andalusia, ATEME, Canal Sur Radio and Television, Axión, Fraunhofer, Mediakind, Synamedia, EVS, Telefónica, ADM Group, AJA, Hispasat, Cellnex, Eutelsat, Rohde & Schwarz, Canon, SONO, Hurí, UHD Spain and Europa Creativa Media Desk Andalucía.