ULTRA-HD Content Acquisition and Exchange Using HEVC Range Extensions

The introduction of ultra-high-definition (UHD) televisions (TVs) will build upon the growing consumer desire for the highest TV image quality possible. The new high-efficiency video coding (HEVC) standard (H.265, MPEG-H Part 2) provides the most bandwidth-efficient delivery of HD and UHD content. HEVC was standardized in early 2013 but addressed only consumer applications. In mid-2014, the HEVC range extensions (RExt) profiles were standardized to address professional applications. This article describes “true” 4K UHDTV and how it achieves a greater immersive viewing experience than today’s HDTV. The article then explores the HEVC tool enhancements for contribution and distribution applications, focusing on the 4:2:2 10-bit and 4:2:0 10-bit formats. To give a sense of picture quality versus bandwidth requirements, three experimental lab tests are discussed: UHDTV1 (3840 x 2160) content is HEVC-compressed and compared with a downscaled 1080p HD version that is HEVC-compressed and then upscaled back to UHDTV1 resolution, HEVC RExt is compared against advanced video coding Fidelity Range Extensions for UHDTV1, and the impact of higher frame rates on the bit rate required for UHDTV1 is investigated.