Elemental to launch first 4K HEVC encoding trial

Video solutions and content delivery firm Elemental Technologies is set to stage what it claims will be the world’s first public demonstration of live 4K HEVC encoding in Japan this weekend. 

Japanese telco K-Opticom Corporation will use Elemental video processing platform to power real-time video streaming of the Osaka Marathon Sunday in live 4K Ultra HD high-efficiency video coding (H.265/HEVC).

The footage will be recorded on Sony PMW-F55 CineAlta 4K cameras located at the midpoint and finish line of the racecourse. Each camera will be mounted with an AJA Ki-Pro Quad, which will send source content to Elemental systems via live 3G-SDI interfaces.

Elemental Live will encode the footage and stream it over K-Opticom (K-OPT) optical fibre networks to an NTT Docomo decoder. Final rendering will take place on an 84-inch Sony 4K Bravia TV, with the public able to view the 4K coverage in a special K-OPT exhibit at the International Exhibition Centre Building in Osaka, said Elemental.

“With resolution four times that of HD, demand for 4K content on high-quality, large-format screens is increasing. The advanced K-OPT optical fibre network combined with the power and flexibility of Elemental’s software-based architecture is vital to meeting this demand and to enabling this unprecedented experimental transmission,” said Takao Fujino, President of K-Opticom – a subsidiary of the Kansai Electric Power Company that provides fibre optic services for the Kansai Region of Japan.

Keith Wymbs, VP of marketing for Elemental added: “The stunning images and high quality of 4K are best showcased at a world-class sporting event like the Osaka marathon. Elemental’s award-winning H.265 codec makes it possible to smoothly transmit 4K images across wideband networks provided by operators like K-Opticom.”