How Formula 1 is gearing up for 8k and real-time TV synchronization

After the introduction of 4k in 2017, Formula 1 is gearing up to embrace 8k resolution and minimize the delay in images between live track action and live television broadcasting.

For a Formula 1 that is becoming increasingly technological, broadcasting must keep pace. The first races in high definition were broadcast starting from the 2011 season, while we had to wait until 2017, the year of Liberty Media‘s takeover, for 4k. The next step now, in collaboration with Tata Communications, a global telecommunications company, is to increase the resolution of television images to 8k and beyond.

Formula 1 is preparing for 8k and television image synchronization.

“In the last two years, the global audience, in almost every part of the world, has become accustomed to having 4K content, and for the younger generations, this is the benchmark,” says Dhaval Ponda, Vice President and Global Head of Media & Entertainment at Tata Communications, in an interview with motorsport.com.

“I think the transition to 8K is actually happening quite well in the industry. And it will certainly happen because for the current generation that is accustomed to 4K, 8K will offer really finer detail and a higher level of quality.”

“It’s a step forward. Even in this case, if you go back to the times of HD and the transition to Full HD, I believe the change was quite significant. When we moved from Full HD to 4K, I think the quality was visibly better, as there was more depth and more detail. Similarly, 8K will capture so many raw details to be stunning.”

To do this, however, it will be necessary to go through three gradual steps in order of importance: “The first step is the creation of a basic digital infrastructure, which essentially involves investing significantly in next-generation technologies. Many of these investments are also a real investment for the future because there are no short-term revenues.”

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The second step will be to create an active network of technology partners to support the entire transition: “Change is never isolated. It is never driven by a single organization. It is always a group of companies working together to make the change happen for viewers globally.”

The last step, but no less important, will concern reducing costs to allow even the average consumer to purchase equipment with such a level of definition: “We would need 8K screens and TVs at an affordable price that consumers can adopt. This is also happening quite rapidly.”

The latency problem
In addition to making images sharper and more detailed, another issue with today’s technology is the latency with which images are broadcast on TV. From track action to monitors along the circuit, the delay is about 1.5 seconds, while at home, the delay reaches up to 7 seconds.

This is also one of the aspects that Tata is focusing on for the future: “Our investment has always focused on how to reduce that extra second, half a second, or even millisecond of live content that traverses thousands of kilometers. Reducing latency involves several aspects. It is about working with better hardware and improving the processing power of computers. One of the ways we are trying to reduce latency and improve content quality is to invest in edge infrastructures.”

The goal is to synchronize the images almost in real-time with what is happening on the track: “We are considering a scenario where we will reduce the delay in such a way that, being close to a sports facility, you can see an event like a goal or someone crossing the finish line on the screen almost simultaneously with the crowd’s response from the facility. The edge digital infrastructure is the sector where most progress will be made. When you compute at the edges, it means you can perform processing there rather than having to go to a data center or a remote location and then come back. This will be the way to go very soon.” – he pointed out.

“At the moment, most content consumption through the primary screen or the television screen, digital screens, laptops, tablets, mobile phones, and cinema screens are all out of sync. This is because the technology is quite fragmented between the various content consumption modes.”

The hoped-for result is to allow perfect synchronization of images, regardless of the device used: “We have collaborated with some of the leading digital operators to offer a synchronized experience, where you could be in a venue and simultaneously watch a trackside screen, a digital screen, and a primary screen, and all would be synchronized.”

“Today, the technology exists to deliver this experience. And I think this will be the way to go so that people can have synchronized video consumption on various screens,” – Dhaval Ponda concluded.