Essential Install Future Tech Trends 2017 | Page 22

Future Tech Trends | Hybrid Log Gamma
Planet Earth II is currently the only show created in the format

Could Hybrid Log Gamma Finally Bring HDR To Broadcast TV ?

Hybrid Log Gamma is a technology that you may not have heard of , but it ’ s one that you ’ ll no doubt come across in the next few years . That ’ s because it ’ s the latest HDR format to enter the marketplace and it ’ s promising to do for broadcast TV what Dolby Vision has done for theatrical content . Jordan O ’ Brien takes a view of the future .
Dolby Vision and HDR 10 can already be found on countless TVs launched from the major manufacturers ; although it may be a little harder to find support for Hybrid Log Gamma ( HLG ). That ’ s partially because the technology is still in development by some of the biggest names in broadcasting . Both the BBC and Japan ’ s NHK have been working on HLG since 2014 , and once officially rolled out , it should enable broadcasters all over the world to broadcast HDR content on live TV .
So why did the BBC and NHK feel it necessary to create their own HDR format when HDR 10 and Dolby Vision already exist ? Well , EI reached out to the BBC ’ s Phil Layton , head of broadcast and connected systems at BBC Research and Development , to find out .
“ It goes back to when a member of my team first saw some HDR pictures ,” Phil notes . “ The BBC has always been slightly sceptical about UHD TV . We always thought more was needed in order to make it a more immersive ,
20 | March 2017 10th-11th May 2017 , Sandown Park , Surrey . Sponsored by