July 2013

Overviewing the Moves Revolving around “Televisions to Come”

From January through May 2013

Keiko Murakami

As television in Japan has completed the digitization of terrestrial broadcasting and celebrated its 60th anniversary, the moves revolving around “televisions to come” are becoming more and more vibrant. In order to accurately understand the situation, it is indispensable to consciously digest the two trends that run in parallel at the different ends of the spectrum: one is a trend in which various types of business operators fiercely compete over the TV business, and the other is a trend involving a national determination of positioning the TV industry within a Japan’s growth strategy and international strategy, which is anchored by the Study Group on Upgrading of Broadcasting Services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

At the Study Group meeting held on May 15th, a framework and a roadmap for the future steps to take in three aspects, 4K/8K (Super High-Vision), smart TV, and CATV platforms, were presented. With the framework and the roadmap, how far will broadcasters, manufactures, and telecommunications carriers be able to accommodate their intentions and how far will the government be able to bring these parties together? What will the consequence of these moves mean to the future of television as well as to the public and society? With these questions in mind, author report the outcome of continuous studies on the future forms of television amid the full-scale convergence of telecommunications and broadcasting. This issue features the latest trend from January to May 2013.

The NHK Monthly Report on Broadcast Research