DVB releases its first 8K UHD tuner specification

DVB, which is the tuner standard used throughout Europe, Australia, and many other regions, has released its first specification for 8K UHD delivery based on HEVC. VVC will be implemented next year.

8K over DVB
North America started deploying ATSC 3.0 (or ‘NextGen TV’), which can support 8K, in 2020. Australia, Europe, parts of Asia, Middle East, Africa and other regions, however, rely on the DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting) tuner system for broadcast signals.

DVB is now ready to take the first steps into 8K UHD video with the release of its first 8K specification. It will initially be based on the HEVC (H.256) video codec, which it also uses for 4K delivery, and support 8K UHD over both broadcast (transport stream) and broadband (DVB-DASH).

– “The DVB Steering Board has approved specification updates that introduce capabilities to deliver 8K UHD video services for the first time. These updates, extending existing support for the HEVC codec, are the first step in a series of key additions planned for the DVB video coding specifications. These will ensure that DVB continues to provide the most comprehensive and flexible toolbox for the delivery of next generation television services via broadcast and broadband,” the DVB organization announced.

There is no word on which TV brands or models will be the first to support DVB’s 8K UHD specifications, but we would not expect 8K channels to launch anytime soon anyway considering the state of 4K broadcast. Streaming services do not follow the ATSC or DVB specifications but rely on the same video codecs, i.e. HEVC.

VVC to be included next year
This is the first step and DVB intends to include additional, more advanced video codecs in future revisions of their 8K UHD specification.

– “The new three candidate codecs that have been initially identified as candidates for addition are AV1, AVS3 and VVC,” the DVB group said in July 2021. “High dynamic range (HDR) and high frame rates (HFR) are also to be supported.”

The first extension will be VVC (Versatile Video Coding), which is expected to be added to DVB’s 8K UHD specification “in early 2022”. BCS Bureau