CEA commemorates major ultra HDTV milestone

USA: The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) commemorated a major milestone in Ultra High Definition (Ultra HD) television.

The 2013 NCAA men’s basketball Final Four® in Atlanta was the first major US sporting event recorded in Ultra HD as part of a closed-circuit demonstration– with four times the resolution of Full HD.

CEA president and CEO Gary Shapiro described the “4K” production of Final Four games as a milestone similar to the first experiments with college basketball in high definition over a decade ago, noting: “These big events provide a platform not just for sports enthusiasts, but for the consumer electronics industry to take steps forward and bring the best technologies into people’s living rooms. CEA views Ultra HD TV as a revolutionary experience for consumers, and the first Ultra HD NCAA game is a buzzer-beater,” Shapiro said.

Gary Yacoubian, chairman of CEA’s Ultra HD Working Group and president and CEO of Specialty Technologies/SVSound, said: “While there are still challenges ahead to deliver Ultra HD content to consumers’ homes, lucky fans in Atlanta are among the first to experience the excitement of sports in this incredible new TV format, with over 8 million pixels, four times the resolution of today’s HDTV.”

For the special Final Four Ultra High Definition demonstration in the Georgia Dome, LG Electronics, a long-time CEA member, worked with Turner Sports and CBS Sports to capture the game in Ultra HD for display on LG’s 84-inch Ultra HD TVs, which was honored with a 2013 CES Best of Innovations award.