Intel Goes for Gold by Processing and Streaming more than 4.7 PetaBytes of Live 8K, 60 fps, 10 bit HDR Sports Content from Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Ravi Velhal, Global Content Technology Strategist and 8K lead
Intel has leveraged its unique position as a global technology leader to advance live 8K TV streaming content to several playback locations across four continents with ecosystem partners.
Imagine watching Tokyo 2020 Olympic event(s) and being able to see absolutely everything in crystal clear detail. Every speck of chalk dust, every piece of tape and even contact lens of Judoka athlete on the floor, every bump on the track, and every ripple and splash of water as each wave curls over the swimmer’s head. Details so real, so stunning, so vivid, you can almost smell the chalk dust, the dirt on the track, or the water splash from the swimming pool. Since audiences were unable to attend their favorite athlete’s or team’s game inside the stadium, Intel with NHK/OBS and partners brought stadium-quality immersive TV experience[s] in 8K to selected audiences and locations around the globe.
Imagine experiencing all of that stadium-quality immersion, allowing you to choose what you wanted to look at and where in a wide-angle shot. Finally, imagine doing all of this, live, mere seconds delayed from when the action happens in Japan. All of this and more is what got Intel started on this mission to work with their partners to bring immersive sports storytelling in 8K 60 fps 10-bit HDR from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
“We [Intel] were not in a partnership with IOC at the time, but, during Rio 2016 Olympics, I walked into Globo-NHK’s 8K theater inside Museu do Amanhã (Musium of Tomorrow) in Rio De Janerio, where an Olympic event was being shown in 8K.” Ravindra Velhal (Ravi), Intel Global Content Technology Strategist and 8K Lead, recalls. “I walked straight up to the screen. It looked so real and with stunning details. I could see every blade of grass in the entire stadium and count the dew on it. Seeing is believing. That’s when I thought that we have to get behind this and start processing and even advancing 8K further for driving its adoption globally.”
This 8K live streaming is one of the many projects, ideas, and visions that drove Intel to be an official and exclusive “CPU” partner to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). For this project, Intel wanted, with the help of Olympic partners OBS (Olympic Broadcasting Services)/NHK-Japan and Globo Brazil, to process and distribute Olympic 8K live stream[s] to several playback locations on four different continents to advance 8K adoption.
And there was no better place and time to try this out than Japan during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The 1964 Tokyo Olympics was considered the birthplace of sports broadcasting on TV. As 8K enthusiasts know, Japan is the land of 8K. Thanks to the pioneering efforts of NHK and others, Japan has had the first 8K broadcast and channel in the world. OBS/NHK broadcasted the opening and closing ceremony and had daily live broadcasts of select Tokyo Olympics games in 8K in Japan over 19 days (including stream test trials — pre-game).
However, Japan’s method of broadcasting and distributing 8K (satellite-based broadcasting and receptions within a limited geographical area) might not be best suited for the rest of the world. This method can also be expensive and time-consuming to set up and scale.
So Intel and their partners, like NHK, Globo, and the Olympic Broadcasting Service, (OBS), wanted to try and find another solution to advance wider 8K global adoption, and the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was a great place to come together despite all the challenges presented.
8K Over the Open Internet Cloud?
So, if 8K channels and recordings are nothing new, what makes what Intel is doing so significant?
Intel has been working with 8K for the past several years, and live-streamed video in 8K before during a live test trial this past December. However, what makes this project so innovative is that it is the first live 8K 60 fps 10-bit HDR broadcast of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics to use the Open Public Internet.
Most 8K capture and encoding happen asynchronously and are streamed with a direct line and a direct link from the source to point-to-point 8K client, requiring uploads (which takes longer) and, downloads to happen on demand, which cause delays. This process is often called “direct links”. The challenge of 8K lies in encoding the 8K, 60 fps, HDR signal live in real-time, having as little latency as possible, thereby creating and setting premium broadcast quality of service standards and doing it on the Open public Internet !. This is what appealed most to Ravi and Intel.
“By using the Open Internet, we hope to broaden 8K distribution globally, the logistics of watching 8K live. Imagine: a million people wanting to watch a live event in 8K, and being able to provide each and every single one of them an 8K (More Pixels), 60 Frames Per Second (FPS) (Faster Pixels), HDR (Better Pixels) HLS live stream .” Ravi says. “We have done this with direct links before, but this pioneering effort shows that more and more 8K live events can happen.”
The largest benefit and the drive behind Ravi and Intel using the Open Internet and existing Content Delivery Networks is that this solution is infinitely scalable and increasingly affordable. With this type of democratization, a massive project with a wider user base could easily follow what Intel is pioneering.
“We aren’t typical broadcasters and we aren’t IOC partners for being RHB (Rights Holder Broadcasters) broadcasters. We are working together with our broadcast partners like OBS/NHK and Globo. This now has reached this landmark milestone beyond just proof of concept to achieve broadcast-grade 8K OTT delivery standard.” Ravi said. “We (Intel and partners) are advancing the possibilities and potential of 8K, 60 fps, HDR OTT live streaming as a new category.”
Technical Specifications
So how does Intel do this? Are you ready for some specifications?
- Several key Tokyo 2020 Olympics events and competitions (216 hrs) were recorded by 8K HDR cameras and professionally produced by OBS/NHK. That uncompressed feed came into Intel’s 8K Encoder Server at IBC (International Broadcasting Center), Tokyo in 4 x 12G SDI format with more than 48 Gbps data rate. The Server is running 4 Intel Xeon 8380H ( 112 cores) with 384GB of RAM. The server compresses the 48 Gbit/s signal using HEVC compression algorithms,a Software encoder optimized for Intel Scalable Xeon processor that leverages CPU resources to deliver broadcast-grade compressed output.
- Again, this encoding happens live. The server then either encodes the uncompressed stream into an HLS 10-bit stream that’s still running 8K, HDR at 60 frames per second at 80–100 Mbit/s as the Compressed distribution signal, and a second HLS stream at 200–250 Mbit/s at 8K. HDR at 60 frames for the Contribution signal.
- From the Open Internet cloud, the live HLS/RTP stream at 8K 60 FPS HDR stream is then streamed live to several different locations over four continents within few seconds.
- Finally, Intel uses PCs that can play 8K, with a CPU using an Intel Xeon W-2295 (18 cores) and 64GB RAM over an HDMI 2.1 cable into an 8K screen. There is a modern GPU in the player PC, but it is “only used to connect to the 8K monitor and color correction. Almost all of the decode processing power is done through the CPU.” Ravi said.
- Sound quality is not lost either, coming in at 22.5 Ch, 5.1 ch, and stereo. It gets separated and the 5.1 Ch profile was selected for down streaming and playback.
The most amazing part? The encoder has been optimized to guarantee minimal latency in both high- and low-delay operation modes: 250 ms for low-delay encoding, and 1500 ms for high-efficiency encoding. “The QS was 250 milliseconds with a 50 Gbps input 8K 60 fps HDR 10 bit signal being compressed, delivered, and played back over a 100 Mbps pipeline for the entire duration of Tokyo 2020 Olympics. That’s a world record in itself. That is the power of Intel Scalable Xeon Processors.” Ravi said.
Doing this, Intel and Intel in collaboration with partners like Globo, captured and processed OBS/NHK signal over 4.7 PB (Petabytes) of Tokyo Olympics Programming Content (over 216 hours live for 19 days straight) over the 8K 60 FPS HDR format by the 112-core Intel Scalable Xeon-server based encoder. This resulted in 17 TB of compressed broadcast-grade content that streamed for 419 hours (Live plus 24x7 replay) across several 8K installations in four continents, generating 87 TB of aggregated internet traffic in an advanced 8K ecosystem powered by Intel.
You can see the entire Intel-based 8K 60 fps HDR Livestream workflow process in the graphic down below:
A December to Remember
We learned a lot from the previous tests, events, and sports events over the years. Intel has been making incremental progress toward real-time 8K streaming for the past several years, including a field test of this technology in December of 2020, with a music performance streamed to four locations on four different continents from Europe.
“We learned a lot over the years and from our December field test,” Ravi said. “We learned that we really needed three things to achieve the gold standard of live sports streaming: 8K, 10 bit HDR, 60 frames per second live uncompressed signal (with multi-channel 22.2, 5.1 and 2 ch stereo for audio immersion), and to achieve the scale of delivery we needed to change our uploads to HLS as Xeon CPUs provided all the processing power necessary to process 8K live stream in real-time with low latency.”
Ravi explained that HTTP Live Streaming protocol, or HLS, does increase latency a bit more compared to RTP protocol, but also allows to achieve scale for distribution globally over commercially available CDN
We leveraged Intel Scalable Xeon 112 core CPU server for this encoding. Our initial Intel testing reports that the Ice Lake as the encoder could help achieve 8K resolutions at 60 FPS with 10-bit HDR real-time encoding using only 80 (2x40) cores.
Intel’s Legacy of Innovation
This type of innovation and thought leadership is nothing new for Intel. Since the early 1990s, under Andy Grove’s leadership, Intel has been at the forefront of pioneering and delivering new video formats, driving innovation and consumer-friendly broadcast policies and legislation, advancing encoding standards and new distribution technologies, and driving Content Access standards to deliver new consumer experiences such as DVD, Blu-Ray, UltraViolet-Digital Copy, 4K, immersive Cinema, [volumetric capture and virtual movie production], and now 8K live streaming over the internet.
“This isn’t just about us partnering with IOC/OBS, Globo, and others to see if this type of test case works. This is a testament of something that tens of thousands of our engineers have been working and keep on innovating since the 1990s to realize the digital media industry that we all enjoy today.” Ravi claims. “This is our Grovian legacy in action.”
And Intel is the best-suited company in the world to make this happen, not only by its own internal skills and technology but with the combined knowledge, deep know-how, and trusted ecosystem partnerships with both developers and other corporations globally. Leveraging combined knowledge, experience, and technologies, Intel has processed to make this historic 8K 60 fps HDR live stream happen with the use of hardware, software, unique development tools, the amount of storage, and using both cloud and edge computing interconnectivity to process and stream the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in stunning 8K 60 FPS HDR live.
More Pixels, Better Pixels, Faster Pixels
“We don’t just want to show sports in 8K live, although that is important,” Ravi said. “We want more pixels, better pixels, and faster pixels for a more immersive 8K TV sports storytelling experience to set the gold standard of 8K 60 fps HDR sports broadcasting, without any up-scaling.”
“More pixels” seems pretty clear. Intel wants to use 8K because it is the largest available amount of pixels at this time and because we are driving 8K momentum, including being a member of the 8K Association.
“The numbers get a little confusing because they are exponential. 8K is actually four times the amount of pixels from 4K, and 8K is over sixteen times the amount of pixels from Full HD.” Ravi said. “However, the file size from 2K (Full HD) to 8K becomes almost 200 times larger because of the higher frame rate, the deeper colors, and the bit rate.”
“Better pixels” requires some explanation. Have you ever watched a sports stream or video stream and watched as the action got swallowed up by flat colors, noticed color banding or lack of vivid image details? Ever experienced a water splash and its color doesn’t look real? That’s where 10 bit- HDR (High Dynamic Range) a wider color gamut with 8K comes into play, and why they need to be added and process to a signal like this for vivid and stunning imagery with compatible 8K HDR TV.
“Using HDR in 8K UHD became clear to us last December,” Ravi said. “HDR really helps provide some great depth and dynamic range, and on 8K UHD, this adds more colors to the color gamut to help the eye make distinctions and make the scenery more realistic. This gives viewers a stronger sensation of reality and lets them feel more immersed than ever before.” While watching the Olympics Swimming competition, the water splash looks like real water droplets. Details at the Opening ceremony are stunningly vivid as colors came to life on 8K TV.
What “faster pixels” means is clear to anyone who is an HD enthusiast, like gamers and sports fans. “We realized a few years back that we needed as many frames per second (60 fps) as we could get,” Ravi said. “For faster pixels, we found that we need as many frames per second to keep things from jittering. This is even truer for action sports.”
The most demanding problem is how large this all makes the signal and how much encoding needs to happen in real-time, as shown above. With more pixels, better pixels, and faster pixels, the uncompressed live stream (48 Gbps) and processed file size are absolutely enormous. However, Intel has the tools, technologies, and know-how to manage the 8K 60 fps HDR-10 bit uncompressed input signal stream, large recorded content file sizes with good cloud and edge computing tools, and excellent hardware and software, including an optimized CPU based compression, machine learning, and Intel Optane, SSD in this use case.
Despite all the hurdles, Ravi and his team believe it is worth it.
“We did all this because we want our viewers to be fully immersed in the event,” Ravi said. “Since audience were not allowed to be inside the stadium to cheer their favorite athlete and teams, we brought stadium-quality immersive TV experience in stunning 8K to our audience, We really wanted you to feel really there.”
During the Olympics, Intel hosted DEG events in Hollywood with Hollywood executives in attendance to see how 8K in the Olympics actually looks. These events impressed me.
“As you can imagine, the image was amazingly sharp with loads of detail: I could even read the names of ID badges in medium shots!” wrote Scott Wilkinson, freelance writer at TechHive, who attended a Los Angeles event. “In longer shots of the stadium, the seats were much more clearly discernable than they would be at lower resolutions, and drops of water that splashed about during the men’s 50m freestyle were razor-sharp.”
Looking into the Future
So what’s next? Always a pioneer and a thought leader, Intel wants to continue expanding on partnering with their Olympic partners to handle 8K and beyond.
“For these Olympics, we partnered with the OBS, Globo, and others, to show these events,” Ravi said. “It was an honor to work with our partners again and push the envelope even further and make this experience accessible and affordable around the globe.”
Grupo Globo, the largest mass media group in Latin America which was founded in and services Brazil, partnered with Intel to display 8K Olympics transmissions (online and for free using Globoplay) to viewers outside Japan for the first time.
“By partnering with Intel and our CPU’s processing power, Globo was able to receive OBS/NHK’s images on the opposite side of the planet live in real-time,” Ravi said. “All without losing 8K quality or delays.”
Going forward, Ravi, Intel, and their partners are looking to the next step of showing live events over the Open Internet in 8K to broaden its adoption.
“We believe 8K content distribution over 5G is going to be a real game-changer by harnessing the true potential of network, cloud, and edge worldwide. Capture/process of multiple 8K uncompressed streams at higher resolution and framerates (120 fps) for certain sports and slow-motion replays requires industry ecosystem partners to come together and collaborate.” Ravi Said “We hope and looking forward to collaborating with OBS and more RHBs for wider worldwide 8K deployment by Paris 2024”
Regardless of what’s next, Intel will be working to keep the immersive experience at the forefront of its efforts. What better way to do that than with amazing 8K technology, great framerates, vivid colors, and low latency on a 2D 8K TV screen in your own home? Ravi and Intel cannot wait.
“The 100-meter dash looked amazing- Seeing is believing,” Ravi concluded. With more pixels, better pixels, and faster pixels, it truly did.
Ravindra “Ravi” Velhal leads Digital Media Standards, Technologies, and Immersive Cinema programs globally at Intel. He and his teams pioneered the first ever live streaming of Tokyo 2020 Olympics games in 8K, 60 fps, HDR over the open internet to selected locations worldwide and launched 8K OTT service with GloboTV in Brazil. Ravi holds several global patents, and he has served as a director on the AIS/VR Society board, Chairs 8K Association, and an advisor to film and trade organizations, globally. Find him on Twitter or LinkedIn.
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