1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,360 Dude, where's my 4K TV? I mean, sure, you can go out and buy a 4K TV set for cheap, 2 00:00:06,360 --> 00:00:10,960 but if you subscribe to cable or satellite, there just isn't that much 4K content available 3 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:15,600 despite the astronomical monthly bill. All the major streaming services, though, 4 00:00:15,600 --> 00:00:19,800 offer a fair amount in 4K. And heck, you might be watching this YouTube video 5 00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:27,080 in 4K on a TV right now. So why is it so tough for traditional TV to be in 4K? 6 00:00:27,080 --> 00:00:30,400 Maybe we should answer this question with another question. 7 00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:34,760 Who cares? Don't get me wrong, 4K is objectively better 8 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:40,160 than standard HD, all other things being equal. But a huge reason we don't have 4K everywhere 9 00:00:40,160 --> 00:00:45,280 is because the traditional content providers simply don't think there's enough demand for it. 10 00:00:45,280 --> 00:00:49,480 In fact, the CEO of Sinclair Broadcast Group, which operates the second largest number 11 00:00:49,480 --> 00:00:54,320 of TV stations in the United States, has called 4K an incremental benefit. 12 00:00:54,320 --> 00:00:58,560 That's not a big driver for demand. And although many of us tech lovers 13 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:01,640 might cry foul over this take, there are lots of people out there 14 00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:06,680 that just don't see much of a difference, especially if they sit far enough away from their TVs. 15 00:01:06,680 --> 00:01:10,880 Instead, broadcasters are interested in getting 1080p 16 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:16,080 at 60 frames a second feeds to us, especially for revenue generating sports events 17 00:01:16,080 --> 00:01:22,280 where the high frame rates can really make a difference. HDR also seems to be a bigger focus for content providers. 18 00:01:22,280 --> 00:01:26,160 As they believe the brighter colors and higher contrasts of an HDR picture 19 00:01:26,160 --> 00:01:30,320 makes a bigger visual impact on the average consumer than switching to 4K does. 20 00:01:30,320 --> 00:01:33,560 But the lack of 4K content isn't just a function 21 00:01:33,560 --> 00:01:36,840 of the perception that consumers don't care about it. 22 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:39,880 It's actually surprisingly difficult for broadcasters 23 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:43,360 and networks to even produce 4K content. 24 00:01:43,360 --> 00:01:47,120 But hold on, you can shoot 4K 60 video on a phone these days. 25 00:01:47,120 --> 00:01:50,300 So why is it so hard for these big money studios? 26 00:01:50,300 --> 00:01:53,880 The content that's hardest to produce in 4K is actually the same content 27 00:01:53,920 --> 00:01:57,680 that's keeping cable and satellite TV afloat financially. 28 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:01,660 Live events, like sports. Unlike movies and TV series 29 00:02:01,660 --> 00:02:05,220 that are often easier to access on a non-cable streaming service, 30 00:02:05,220 --> 00:02:09,360 live events require lots of expensive, specialized equipment. 31 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:14,680 Even though both live events and other content like movies are commonly shot with 4K cameras, 32 00:02:14,680 --> 00:02:19,080 live sports require additional lenses that can shoot fast action at a distance, 33 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:23,880 long strips of costly active wiring, and an entire production truck 34 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:28,160 that has to be outfitted with gear that can quickly sync, edit, and transmit 35 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:33,280 all that 4K footage to be broadcast. Add it all up and that's many millions of dollars 36 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:38,400 that broadcasters simply do not want to sink into what they perceive to be a marginal improvement 37 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:42,080 over standard HD. Even if we're not talking about live events, 38 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:46,440 shooting shows or movies in 4K also require additional infrastructure for editing, 39 00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:50,920 reviewing, and managing all that content. Newer streaming services like Apple TV 40 00:02:51,040 --> 00:02:54,840 got started with 4K in mind, but legacy television networks 41 00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:58,600 have to make larger investments in 4K to get it out to the consumer, 42 00:02:58,600 --> 00:03:03,480 replacing gear that's working perfectly fine. There are also still technical restrictions 43 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:08,160 even if a network does have 4K content ready to go. 44 00:03:08,160 --> 00:03:14,280 Although a cable network can get you gigabit internet these days, the portion of the pipe that's reserved for digital cable 45 00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:20,240 already is quite crowded and 4K takes up much more space than typical HD channels. 46 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:25,040 So having a wide range of 4K offerings might force providers into cutting more channels 47 00:03:25,040 --> 00:03:29,560 than they're willing to stomach. But what if you just got a few 4K channels 48 00:03:29,560 --> 00:03:35,720 over an antenna and stream everything else? Well, the new ATSC 3.0 standard for over-the-air TV 49 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:38,720 is 4K capable, but that doesn't mean the stations 50 00:03:38,720 --> 00:03:41,960 that use it are broadcasting tons of actual 4K content. 51 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:47,080 And TVs that support aren't quite ubiquitous yet. So bottom line, it may still be a while 52 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:51,240 before 4K is everywhere. But the good news is that we've been doing 4K here 53 00:03:51,240 --> 00:03:57,120 at TechWiki since 2014, baby. Though we have no plans to launch a cable TV channel yet. 54 00:03:57,120 --> 00:04:01,720 So thanks for watching guys. If you liked this video, hit like, hit subscribe, and hit us up in the comment section 55 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:04,960 with your suggestions for topics that we should cover in the future.