Britons watch 'future of television'

A lucky few Britons are getting a chance to watch Olympic broadcasts of unprecedented quality showcasing a technology that its creators are hailing “the future of television."

Japan's public broadcaster NHK is using London 2012 to test “Super Hi-Vision” TV, which offers images 16 times the resolution of existing HDTV, in a partnership with the BBC and the Games’ own Olympic Broadcast Service.  The sceptics may think the claims are hyperbole but broadcasters have often used the Games to pioneer developments that seemed ambitious but soon became commonplace in households around the globe.

The BBC is showing Olympic action in “Super Hi-Vision” to audiences in theatres in London and two other British cities, while screenings are also planned in the US capital Washington and the Japanese cities of Tokyo and Fukushima during the Games.

“We are in the middle of broadcasting history,” said Matthew Postgate, head of R&D at the BBC.
Its backers say the technology is as close to being at the event as it has been able to achieve so far, allowing viewers “immersion” in the event.