Ikegami has chosen CABSAT 2016 as the launch venue for its new UHK-430 4K/HD portable camera system. First in Ikegami's next-generation Unicam XE series, the UHK-430 employs three newly-developed 4K-native 2/3 inch CMOS sensors which provide full 3840 x 2160 ultra-high definition resolution plus the depth of field required for studio and outdoor production. The camera is equipped with a B4 bayonet mount compatible with 2/3 inch HD lenses. An optional SE-U430 expander accommodates large studio or OB lenses.

Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs & Communications says the country is likely to have between 19 and 22 4K channels on air by 2018. Some Japanese broadcasters, notably JSAT’s SkyPerfecTV, are already transmitting UHD programming.

LG Electronics today announced the world’s first end-to-end 4K broadcast using the next-generation ATSC 3.0 standard. Conducted in Korea, the test broadcast was a joint project of LG, Korean broadcasters SBS and MBC, the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) of Korea, conditional access firm DigiCAP of Korea, broadcast equipment supplier TeamCast of France, and video software supplier Media Excel of the United States.

Sony has today announced the PXW-Z150, the latest addition to its XDCAM range of lightweight, easy to use professional camcorders with new functionality to enable wireless operation and 4K high quality shooting. The flexible, effortless set up capabilities of the portable PXW-Z150 enables content creators of all experience levels to deliver impressive imagery for content and events shooting scenarios, no matter how tight their brief. The PXW-Z150 features a 1.0 type stacked Exmor RS CMOS image sensor, providing users with spectacular 4K recording and impressive 5x slow motion in Full HD - essential functionality for content creators looking to deliver corporate or personal productions to the highest quality.

As Super Bowl fervor crescendos in the Bay Area, the San Francisco 49ers’ production team has been hard at work behind the scenes, prepping the Levi’s Stadium control room to handle the big game. And to ensure that its video workflow is up to the task, the 49ers turned to Evertz to build out an IP infrastructure.

Some of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will be covered in 8K ‘Super Hi-Vision’ (for Japan), and there will be 4K Ultra HD versions created for testing and comparison purposes. The 8K versions for Japan will include ‘immersive’ audio using what Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) describe as “3D 22.2 channel audio surround sound”.

National Theatre Live will partner with the Royal Court and Playful Productions to broadcast Hangmen from London’s West End. It will be captured in ultra-detailed Sony 4K and projected in the highest picture quality to audiences across Vue Cinemas’ 84-site estate.

Rogers Media, a core division of Canadian media giant Rogers Communications, has selected SAM to provide a range of leading technology for its new, market-defining 4K and HDR broadcasting services. The announced programming package to be delivered includes over 100 live sports events, including every Toronto Blue Jays baseball home games and more than 20 NHL games.

Panasonic Marketing Middle East & Africa has unveiled its latest VariCam LT for its first regional appearance at CABSAT being held in Dubai from 8^th–10^th March 2016. VariCam retains the ability to shoot in both 4K (4096 x 2160) and UHD (3840 x 2160) and features high sensitivity, low noise, wide dynamic range and a cinematic depth of field.

Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT), the worldwide leader in video delivery infrastructure, today announced the release of its next-generation media-storage platform, the Harmonic MediaGrid 4000 shared storage solution. The high-performance scale-out storage system increases storage density to 24 6-TB drives in a 4-RU chassis, and delivers the performance of a Fibre Channel storage area network (SAN) with the simplicity and scalability of Ethernet-based network-attached storage (NAS). Capable of supporting every stage in diverse media workflows, including production of live sports, news and entertainment in HD and 4K/Ultra HD, the Harmonic MediaGrid 4000 system enables superior workflow efficiency and productivity through storage consolidation and on-the-fly scaling of capacity and bandwidth.

Utah Scientific today announced its all-new UHD-12G digital routing switcher, the industry's first enterprise-class router to enable distribution of a full range of SDI video signals, from SD data rates up to 2160p60 data rates, in a single-link interconnect. Ideal for live acquisition of UHDTV content, the UHD-12G simplifies installations, reduces the rack space and cables needed to process 4K signals, and lowers operating expense.

The “FUJINON UA80x9,”boasts optical performance and is compatible with 4K cameras. The prestigious “iF Design Award” is an international design award launched in 1953 by the “iF” International Forum Design in Hannover, Germany. It is one of the worlds three most prestigious design awards, alongside Germany's “Red Dot Design      Award” and the United States’ “IDEA Award.” The UA80x9 was selected in recognition of not only exterior design, but also because of its advanced product performance and ease of use.

Various Eurovision units followed up a successful 4K test from Kitzbühel, Austria a few weeks ago by setting up a similar showcase at the 2016 IBU Biathlon World Championships in Oslo –Holmenkollen.

The pay-TV giant is promising that its new commitment to VR content will bring its expertise in storytelling to the creation of immersive experiences that will put the viewer right at the heart of the action. To step up the production of VR content across all its markets, Sky has created Sky VR Studio, a dedicated in-house VR production unit. As well as creating sports content, the new unit’s remit will also encompass films, news and entertainment.

O.K., I admit it… VR (virtual reality) is going to be big in a few years.
After experiencing The Martian at SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture & Television Engineers) and hearing from friends at Sundance about the lines of folks waiting patiently to put on the gear for the dozen or so films. Then there was the drill-down VR session at HPA (Hollywood Post Alliance) Tech Retreat. It’s safe to say that the industry is taking VR film work seriously. VR isn’t really new, although my kid swears it was because he wanted to be in the thick of the battle with his newest games. It wasn’t until he saw some pictures of the ViewMaster his grandfather had as a kid that he acknowledged that maybe, just maybe, VR has been around longer than he has.  We just needed tech advances to really bring it to life.