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November 2017
NEWS & VIEWS
New fund to reinvigorate local content in S ’ pore
SINGAPORE – The Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore ( IMDA ) and Singapore terrestrial broadcaster MediaCorp have announced the launch of a new Content Development Fund ( CDF ).
The CDF , said IMDA and Media Corp , will “ reinvigorate , refresh and raise the quality , innovativeness and creativity of public service broadcast ( PSB ) content on Media Corp ’ s platforms .
The three-year fund will provide seed money to local content creators to pilot and test new concepts and formats , and aims to encourage experimentation and the use of “ cutting-edge technologies to create fun , engaging and meaningful content ”.
Angeline Poh , assistant chief executive ( industry development ), IMDA , said : “ By harnessing the value of technology and combining it with expert storytelling techniques , we can reinvent the way stories are told .
“ Through the CDF , we aim to encourage creative individuals to think out of the box , try out new content formats and technology that will keep our local public service content exciting for Singaporean audiences in this digital age .
“ We look forward to seeing many innovative ideas emerging .”
The CDF is open to Singapore-registered companies only and will be managed through an open Call-For-Pitch process .
Projects funded under the CDF should cater to local audiences of MediaCorp channels and platforms , including TV and digital . These include Channel 5 , okto , Channel 8 , Suria , Vasantham , Channel News Asia and Toggle , MediaCorp ’ s over-the-top ( OTT ) interactive service .
Debra Soon , chief customer officer , MediaCorp , added : “ We are delighted to partner the IMDA and
Call to think of entire workflow when considering next-gen broadcast services
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“ The strength of OTT is the ability to provide niche services — you need to think how you can provide premium services , and how to charge for them .”
While agreeing that OTT is growing , Dr Amal argued that the distribution costs is not yet proportionate to the size of the audience reached . He called on broadcasters to take advantage of machine learning and artificial intelligence ( AI ) to gather more data on how people consume content .
From a European perspective , people enjoy the convenience of recommendation services , shared Oliver Linow , head of technical distribution monitoring at German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle .
The flip side of this , according to him , is how recommendations compel people to choose content similar to what they have watched in the past , without bothering to search for new content .
Linow also believes that it is increasingly critical that broadcasters have a social media presence , and a strategy to bring content to social media audiences . “ Be flexible on the platforms that you deliver over ,” he added .
When the 2020 Summer Olympics graces Tokyo , Japanese public
IMDA ’ s Angeline Poh : “ We look forward to seeing many innovative ideas emerging .”
ABU ’ s Dr Amal Punchihewa ( front row , third from left ), at the ABU ’ s 5th regional workshop on OTT and integrate broadcast / broadband technologies and services for media , said that the efficiency and long-term survival of broadcast stations would come down to how cost-effectively they produce content , and how quickly they respond to changes .
broadcaster NHK will not only broadcast the Games in 8K but they will also be looking at the possibility of creating virtual reality ( VR ) and augmented reality ( AR ) content .
Revealing this , Masaru Takechi , senior research engineer , NHK , said : “ We can use VR and AR as tools to create second channels . It might not necessarily be main content but we think we can use these tools to create ads and secondary programming .”
VR and AR technologies can provide a good platform to present some specific content , and can enhance the video experience , added Keisuke Miki , deputy vice-president , Tokyo Broadcasting System Television . “ The problem is it takes a long time to produce the co-invest in raising the bar on local productions . We are looking for fresh , innovative , fun and meaningful concepts to tell real Singapore stories that resonate with different audiences .
“ We hope it will spur experimentation and creativity with new content formats to cater to a new generation of viewers .”
Central to the initiative is new technology , according to Media Corp , which is incorporating virtual reality ( VR ) into the upcoming Channel 5 drama , Missing , the broadcaster ’ s first VR series produced in partnership with WaWa Pictures and Vostok VR .
Soon concluded : “ Setting this drama apart from what we ’ ve done in the past are VR Web videos produced to complement the main storyline , and provide immersive experiences for audiences in the backstories of the characters and the crime scenes .
“ We aim to keep the public service broadcasting content that we create always fresh , always relevant .”
content , and it is expensive work . The technologies themselves are also not well developed yet , as are the presentation devices ,” he said .
The broadcast industry is today standing at the threshold to the next generation of broadcast services . And in this digital transition , broadcasters need to think of their entire workflow , urged NHK ’ s Masaru .
Agreeing with Masaru ’ s assessment , Dr Amal said that the efficiency and long-term survival of broadcast stations would come down to how cost-effectively they produce content , and how quickly they respond to changes .
Or , as Masaru concludes , without a hint of irony : “ When something shifts , we have to pay the costs .”
Broadcasters split on which is the best way : HD + HDR or 4K / UHD ?
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tions that makes the combination of HDR with HD practical for broadcasters , suggested Dr Siebert .
Firstly , the high data rate requirements in the studio and higher transmission cost makes 4K / UHD more expensive to implement , while terrestrial networks also currently do not have the capacity available to support a high number of 4K / UHD services .
“ Furthermore , it should be considered that the resolution benefits are viewing-distance-dependent . Especially on a 55-inch UHD TV set with proper upscaling , people will hardly notice under normal viewing conditions the difference between UHD and HD ,” said Dr Sierbert .
While he is keen to reiterate that it is up to broadcasters to make their own choices based on their requirements , he recommended that they at least consider the possibility of introducing HDR , HFR , WCG or NGA , in combination with HD .
Perhaps unsurprisingly , broadcasters APB spoke with were divided on which is the best way to go . Taiwan ’ s Public Television Service ( PTS ) and Vietnam Digital Television ( VTC ), for instance , recently conducted high-profile 4K / UHD broadcast trials in their respective countries .
According to Phan Tien Dung , CTO of VTC , 4K / UHD offers an opportunity to provide audiences with a more compelling and engaging viewing experience . As VTC prepares to officially launch a 4K / UHD channel next year , Phan is convinced that viewers will be able to appreciate the “ big difference ” 4K / UHD will demonstrate , as compared to HD or SD resolutions .
HD + HDR , on the other hand , will be harder to communicate to viewers and will have less impact than 4K / UHD , he added .
As a public broadcaster in Taiwan , PTS is duty-bound to drive new TV technologies and , at the behest of the government , it will continue to conduct its 4K / UHD trial , revealed Hamilton Cheng , research coordinator , PTS .
However , he conceded that HD + HDR could possibly be easier to implement than 4K / UHD , although these may not be “ mutually exclusive ”.
“ I think we can manage the exploration of both technology paths , and one of PTS ’ principals is to deploy new technologies with care and due diligence ,” Cheng added .
Others , however , are more adamant on where their future lies . Most consumers simply will not be able to enjoy the true benefits of 4K / UHD , said Goh Kim Soon ,
VTC ’ s Phan Tien Dung : Viewers will be able to appreciate the “ big difference ” 4K / UHD will demonstrate , as compared to HD or SD resolutions .
MediaCorp ’ s Goh Kim Soon : “ The bandwidth needed for transmission of HDR metadata is very small and can be accommodated in our existing distribution system .”
Media Prima ’ s Dr Ahmad Zaki Mohd Salleh : “ With 4K / UHD , there are issues pertaining to huge additional investments , which may not be affordable for us at this point in time .”
senior vice-president , broadcast engineering , MediaCorp , Singapore . “ In terms of resolution , there is no significant picture-quality difference between HD and 4K / UHD for TV sets below 65 inches ,” he explained . “ HDR , on the other hand , makes a big difference to picture quality . In addition , the bandwidth needed for transmission of HDR metadata is very small and can be accommodated in our existing distribution system .”
For Dr Ahmad Zaki Mohd Salleh , group GM , engineering , Media Prima , Malaysia , there is a very valid and practical reason why he is not considering 4K / UHD — cost !
He explained : “ With 4K / UHD , there are issues pertaining to huge additional investments , which may not be affordable for us at this point in time . HDR is interesting as it does not involve too much additional investment , although I am referring to a post-production standpoint .”
While some continue to advocate for 4K / UHD , Dr Zaki also questioned if this is really what the broadcast industry wants , or needs . Calling 4K / UHD a “ complete revamp ”, he concluded : “ Remember that 4K / UHD is not merely cameras — it also means bigger network bandwidth , bigger transit storage sizes , higher quality editing software , bigger archival storage and , finally , new receiver screens .
“ Simply put , it takes more investment to do 4K / UHD than HD + HDR .”