China embracing era of smart broadcasting

The technical aspects of China’s embrace of smart broadcasting were given a thorough workout this week as part of the ongoing Shanghai Television Festival.

Topics covered by keynote speakers included: future broadcasting planning; AI content generation’ big data construction; and the development of ultra-high definition broadcasting.

Sun Suchuan, deputy Director-General of the Science and Technology Department of the National Radio & Television Authority explained that the national government has iterated a strategic development plan for the TV sector running until 2035 as well as medium- and long-term technological strategies.

“We need to establish a new development pattern for broadcasting, television, and the internet by implementing six primary technological measures, including technology, science, data, security, risk prevention, and coordination,” she said.

Chinese broadcasting and television should present six characteristics: channel customization, diverse carrier presentation, immersive audio-visual experience, intelligent services, humanized interaction, and a seamless network experience.

During the forum, Luo Yi, Deputy Director of the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism and the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Radio and Television, said that the current
“14th Five-Year Plan,” aims to see Shanghai Media Group cultivate a leadership position. The city aims to cultivate more than 15 production-leading enterprises with various ownership forms, nurture three internationally renowned program production and operation enterprises, foster four leading enterprises in the field of “5G + Internet” sports and entertainment services, and establish a new 5G network video industry ecosystem.

Ultra high definition broadcasting is already moving apace. The technology was considered experimental as recently as 2018, but by 2022 it was used for the live broadcast of the Beijing Winter Olympics, said Jiang Wenbo, a member of the Editorial Committee of CMG.

Peng Wensheng, deputy chief editor of China Broadcast Network, said that China’s myriad local cable TV networks had been integrated into the nationwide China Broadcast Network by 2020. Now the ambition is the integration of the cable network and the construction of 5G broadcasting and television systems.

As overseas, the fragmentation of audiences across channels and devices has created challenges for audience ratings measurement. Deng Xiangdong, Deputy Director of the Radio and Television Information Network Center of the NRTA, said that “construction of a comprehensive evaluation big data system for program ratings” is under way.

The ultra-high-definition and 5G rollouts also led to the broadcast of this year’s CCTV “Spring Festival Gala,” a variety show that is frequently the most watched TV show of the year, as a vertical video feed that could be watched live on smart phones. And, the viewership of this year’s Spring Festival Gala has significantly improved from last year, with 130 million people during the live broadcast last year to 190 million people.

Another upcoming development is IMAX-Enhanced 4K HDR. “This will bring earth-shaking changes to the lives of the people,” said Dr. Zhang Xiaoming, VP of the Xperi China Region. Great sound and image integration will be presented as an immersive home viewing experience. This will be achieved through simultaneous use of exclusive content, playback optimization and premium certified devices. Variety