Olympics, 5G, UHD energizing broadcast sector

China's broadcasting and television sector is enjoying growth momentum fueled by the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and the deployment of superfast 5G wireless technology, which makes the transmission of 8K ultrahigh definition content possible.

Shares of Beijing Gehua CATV Network Co Ltd and Wasu Media Holding Co Ltd surged by their daily limit to close at 8.8 yuan ($1.4) and 8.69 yuan per share, respectively, on Wednesday. Wasu's shares rose by 1.38 percent to 8.81 yuan on Thursday.

Dong Min, deputy secretary-general of the China Video Industry Association, said the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and the large-scale commercial application of 5G technology will bolster the rapid growth of broadcasting and TV companies capable of producing ultrahigh definition programs.

Some cutting-edge technologies, such as 5G, 4K and 8K UHD, artificial intelligence-powered graphics processing and augmented reality livestreaming systems have been applied in the Winter Olympics, said Wu Chunyong, an independent analyst in the telecommunications, media and technology or TMT industry.

China is accelerating efforts to construct 4K and 8K UHD large screens, with a focus on enriching application scenarios of UHD and bolstering their integration and innovative development with various industries, according to a guideline unveiled by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other government departments last month.

More efforts should be made to speed up the upgrading and application of video and audio equipment, and promote the maturity of technical standard systems and industrial chains, said the guideline.

In addition, China Media Group has launched CCTV-8K, an 8K UHD TV channel, to broadcast the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics to audiences. It has accelerated the rapid development of the whole industrial chain that covers 8K TV production, broadcasting and transmission, said CMG.

The total scale of China's UHD video industry is expected to exceed 4 trillion yuan ($629.2 billion) by 2022, according to an action plan issued by the MIIT, the National Radio and Television Administration and CMG.

The plan said a sound industrial system for 4K video will be established and breakthroughs will be made in the R&D of products and the industrialization of 8K technology by the end of 2022, with a cluster of internationally competitive companies in the field to be fostered.

The broadcasting of sporting events via 8K equipment has also motivated people to demand high-definition image quality, said Liu Fei, research director of the consumer electronics department at market consultancy AVC.

"The deep integration of UHD videos, 5G, artificial intelligence, virtual reality and other new-generation information technologies brings about a large number of new scenarios, applications and models, which have become an important driving force for commercial use of 5G," said Zhang Li, head of the China Center for Information Industry Development.