BT has announced details of BT Sport Ultra HD, the UK’s first ultra-high-definition (UHD) television channel. BT says the new channel will be available as part of the Entertainment Ultra HD Bundle, which will cost users a relatively affordable £15 a month.
In addition to BT Sport Ultra HD, the bundle also throws in a 1TB YouView+ box, 47 premium channels, 80 Freeview channels and up to £500 towards an LG 4K TV. Customers will require BT Infinity (38 Mbits/sec) or BT Infinity 2 (76 Mbits/sec) broadband to get the new channel, and will have to pay a £44 installation fee.
“BT Sport Ultra HD is the next step in high-definition TV and provides a truly cinematic viewing experience,” said Delia Bushell, MD of BT TV and BT Sport. “We are proud to be innovating and leading the UK TV market with our Entertainment Ultra HD package.”
Coverage
BT’s 4K coverage will kick off on Sunday 2 August with the Community Shield match between Arsenal and Chelsea. The following Saturday, the UHD channel will show the opening game of the 2015-16 Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur versus Manchester United.
However, viewers expecting to watch every game in 4K will be disappointed. BT says it will only be broadcasting selected events – including Champions League games and this year’s British MotoGP event – in 4K, but it has not said exactly how much UHD coverage it will offer.
What is 4K?
4K is the highest resolution currently available on televisions. It aims to produce a sharper picture than HD Ready or Full HD screens. While Full HD footage uses 1,920 x 1,080 pixels, UHD doubles the amount of vertical and horizontal pixels to provide a resolution of 3,840 x 2,160. This means the resolution is four times denser, and pictures four times more detailed, than Full HD.
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