Broadcaster displays high-tech vision

China Media Group employs cutting-edge techniques to deliver intelligent and immersive viewing experience

New technologies such as augmented reality and 3D have been used in the live broadcasts of the Hangzhou Asian Games in an attempt to reach a wider audience and ensure a more intelligent and immersive viewing experience, said the event's host broadcaster at a news conference on Wednesday.

"We have put many new technologies into the production of the broadcast for this Asian Games, which is in accordance with the standards of the broadcasts we produce for the Olympic Games," said Zhi Wei, deputy director general of the Technology Bureau of China Media Group, the host broadcaster of the Hangzhou Asian Games.

"For the first time in the history of the Asian Games, 4K ultra-high definition (UHD) video and 5.1 surround sound are being used for the event, including the opening and closing ceremonies and the competitions," Zhi continued.

All the signals are transmitted through a cloud platform to ensure close-to-real time transmission and broadcasting, making the Hangzhou Asiad the first Asian Games to use cloud broadcasting, Zhi added.

A total of 83 signals with a duration of about 3,500 hours are expected to be transmitted through the cloud, said Zhao Jianjun, head of Host Broadcaster of the Hangzhou Asian Games.

To allow the audience to immerse themselves in the atmosphere on the field at various events and to connect more with the athletes, technologies such as augmented reality, artificial intelligence and 3D have been applied in the broadcasting of many of the competitive events, as well as the opening ceremony, Zhi said.

As of Wednesday, the live broadcast of the opening ceremony had received more than 650 million views, according to Zhao.

Portrait aspect broadcast signals have also been produced for the first time in Asian Games history to facilitate the viewing habits of mobile phone users, Zhi continued.

While television broadcasting has been one of the most important means of communication for large-scale international sports events, with the development of science and technology, TV broadcasts have been expanded to mobile terminals and other platforms, Zhi said.

"We even produce 4K UHD and 8K UHD videos, along with 3D aural signals, for mobile viewing apps, which can also be streamed to 4K and 8K TVs through screen mirroring and network sharing," Zhi said.

According to the Hangzhou Asian Games Organizing Committee, in addition to live broadcasts by China Central Television, audiences can also access six video platforms or TV stations, including Tencent, Douyin, Kuaishou, Migu, Huya Live and Hong Kong Cable Broadband Group, for live broadcasts of the Hangzhou Asian Games.