German pay-television broadcaster Sky Deutschland has claimed it is close to completing an Ultra HD breakthrough after completing the first broadcast of a football match live over satellite in the format, encoded with the new High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard.
Bayern Munich’s 5-2 Bundesliga win over Werder Bremen on April 26 was filmed by six 4K cameras combined with four HD cameras, which were “upcoverted” to Ultra HD and delivered on several Ultra HD televisions at Sky’s headquarters in Unterföhring.
Sky Deutchland chief executive Brian Sullivan said: “By successfully broadcasting a complete Bundesliga match live in what was a true end-to-end test of the full Ultra HD production chain, it is clear that the day is getting closer when it will be possible to bring a top quality Ultra HD live sport production into the living rooms of consumers.
“There are still a few things to take care of, but I am very confident that we as the innovation leader, along with our partners, are on a very good path to revolutionising the viewing experience.”
Last December, Sky undertook its first Ultra HD test for a football match when Bayern took on Borussia Dortmund.