NHK partners with Eutelsat

NHK has partnered with Eutelsat Communications to launch one of the world’s first 8K networks; BS8K. To achieve the technologically challenging feat, NHK relied on DVB-S2X modulation, in 16APSK, and HEVC encoding. The images (7680 pixels over 4320 lines, astounding 33.3 million pixels per image) were shot at 60 frames per second in BT2020 color space, with 10 bits of color depth (1 billion colors) and high dynamic range HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma), combined with 22.2 channel audio.

BS8K features 8K Ultra HD footage of major cultural and sporting events, museums and natural landscapes, providing viewers with a fully immersive experience which will be broadcast 12 hours a day. The channel will allow for further experimentation with 8K prior to the large-scale deployment of the format for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics games in 2020.