ITV

Tag: Samir Gupta

  • Tech cos ready new immersive & interactive TV audio system

    Tech cos ready new immersive & interactive TV audio system

    MUMBAI: Fraunhofer IIS, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and Technicolor, the three major technology companies behind the MPEG-H Audio standard, are demonstrating this new technology at the NAB 2015 conference in Las Vegas. In two separate venues, the companies will offer the world’s first live broadcast demonstration of their new immersive and interactive TV audio system currently proposed for ATSC 3.0 and being developed for over-the-top streaming video services.

     

    MPEG-H Audio is designed to offer broadcasters a cost-effective means to elevate the sound quality of their offerings beyond 5.1 surround while incorporating groundbreaking new interactive and immersive features across the full range of modern viewing devices from high-end home theaters, to tablets, smart phones, and sound bars.

     

    The end-to-end live production demonstration at the Fraunhofer booth will incorporate a live audio feed from a remote truck combined with recorded programming from video servers at the network. The process for distributing the new, live content to affiliate stations, inserting local commercials and emission to viewers’ living rooms, will be included in the demo.

     

    Aside from the Fraunhofer prototype audio/video encoders and decoders and a Jünger Audio monitoring unit, all of the equipment in the demonstration is unmodified broadcast equipment used in TV plants and remote trucks today.

     

    The system is based on the new MPEG-H Audio international standard. It offers viewers the ability to choose different audio presentations, such as “home team” or “away team” commentary for a sports event, or volume control over specific audio elements in a program – such as dialogue or sound effects. Viewers are also able to experience immersive sound over loudspeakers, new 3D soundbars, tablet computer speakers, and headphones. Additionally, it is a true multi-screen audio system that tailors playback so programs sound best on a range of devices and environments – from quiet home theaters with speakers to the subway or airport with earbuds.

     

    All of these features will be under the control of the broadcaster or content distributor, providing new creative opportunities, such as the ability to efficiently add additional languages, players, or official microphones, or, as the three companies have demonstrated, car to pit crew radios at races.

     

    “This system has grown from our pioneering work on Dialogue Enhancement years ago and our early work in immersive sound, as well as our 15 years of providing half the world’s TV sound. In November 2013, we presented the idea of a football game where you could Hear Your Home Team™ and adjust audio elements of a program to your preference. We have progressed to a full, live implementation of the audio path from the field of play at a sports event to the listener’s ears at home or mobile,” said Fraunhofer USA Digital Media Technologies division general manager Robert Bleidt.

     

    “At Technicolor we are proud to contribute our Scene Based Audio Higher-Order Ambisonics technology to this great opportunity for broadcasters. We continue to invest in the creative community to develop a rich ecosystem for the Film and the Broadcast industry,” added Technicolor SVP, content solutions & industry relations Claude Gagnon.

     

    The demonstration will also include prototypes of new consumer devices supporting MPEG-H, including a Technicolor set-top box, Samsung pre-production prototype TV, and Texas Instruments-based audio-video receiver.

     

    In addition, Qualcomm Technologies will be demonstrating an end-to-end simulated live broadcast of immersive, scene-based MPEG-H audio. Every stage of a live Higher Order Ambisonic (HOA) production will be demonstrated: from capture of a live 3D musical performance, through efficient transport through a TV plant (NoC to affiliate), an emission encoder (MPEG-H) to playback on consumer devices with various speaker configurations.

     

    “Qualcomm Technologies collaborated on the development and supports the new MPEG-H standard, and is taking important steps towards widespread distribution of HOA and MPEG-H audio across a range of consumer devices. Given Qualcomm Technologies’ technology leadership in 4K UHD video and now with MPEG-H audio, Qualcomm Technologies continues to drive innovations that can deliver unprecedented mobile multimedia experiences to consumers,” said Qualcomm Technologies vice president, engineering Samir Gupta.

  • ‘Dolly Ki Doli’ a hit in Pakistan; earns 50 lakh on Day 1

    ‘Dolly Ki Doli’ a hit in Pakistan; earns 50 lakh on Day 1

    NEW DELHI: The film Dolly Ki Dolly starring Sonam Kapoor with Pulkit Samrt, Rajkumar Rao and Varun Sharma has become a major hit in Pakistan earning Rs 50 lakh in its opening day on the big screen.

     

    Produced by Kinesis Films and Arbaaz Khan Productions, the film also did good business in the United Arab Emirates.

     

    The hilarious comedy was screened at 35 cinemas on 65 plus screens (68-70 screens approximately in total including e-print and DCP) in cinemas nationwide.

     

    The success of the film in Pakistan could be due to the wholesome family entertainment quotient and the song “Mere Naina Kafir Ho Gaye” by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan- a hightlight in the film.

     

    Malaika Arora Khan’s item number and Saif Ali Khan’s guest appearance all add to the Bollywood masala the film has to offer.

     

    Kinesis Films director Samir Gupta said, “The film has performed very well in Pakistan in week 2 despite the other releases and is continuing in 30 cinemas even in week 3. While Khoobsurat had the advantage of the popular Pakistani actor Fawad Khan, this has been a super effort by Sonam and the rest of the cast to bring in family audiences and keep them entertained.”

  • There is a need for uniform tax regime in the country: Siddharth Roy Kapur

    There is a need for uniform tax regime in the country: Siddharth Roy Kapur

    MUMBAI: A country, which is considered filmy, with the kind of movies produced and the impact it has on the people, still faces numerous challenges. And one of this is the lack of cinema screens.

     

    In a panel discussion at the 2nd Media & Entertainment Law Forum 2014 conducted by Legal Era, Walt Disney India MD Siddharth Roy Kapur stressed on how even with a population of 1.2 billion, there are only 13 screens for every one million people. “In fact, 3 Idiots, the greatest hit and revenue generator so far reached out to only 3 per cent of the entire Indian population, in terms of screens. All the others saw it on TV,” informed Kapur.

     

    M&E industry contributes 0.5 per cent of the overall GDP of the country, of which movies is a Rs 12,000 crore business. Theatrical release, satellite rights, international rights and digital screening are all different models of revenue streams for the industry currently.

     

    “We have so far not represented ourselves in a way that we should have to the government. We need to work with the government so that they know how well we can contribute to the economy of the country. It is only then that they will understand our challenges,” added Kapur.

     

    According to Kapur, infrastructure, piracy, regulation and creativity if galvanised in the right direction can take the movie industry forward.  “There is not much regulation on the piracy front as well,” he said.  

     

    The country also needs to invest in talent to ensure creativity. “Apart from that, of course we need good movies. The industry has to focus on writing and paying more to the writers. We need to move out of the south Asian diaspora and cater to a wider audience world over,” he opined.

     

    An interesting point that came out during the panel discussion was the fact that regional movies contribute to 40 per cent of the total revenue the industry generates. “Mostly it comes from the Tamil and Telugu movies,” informed Reliance Big Films CFO Shibasish Sarkar.

     

    Addressing the growth of regional movies, Kapur said that though these are important markets their sensibilities are different. “So it is better to ally with local partners, in terms of directors or producers at least for a couple of initial movies and then get your hands dirty. We do one Tamil movie a year now,” he informed.

     

    Talking on the investment in movies, Sarkar said that any investor today looks at risk return ration before investing in a project. “Unfortunately, we have not yet been able to create an environment such that the investors can be made to feel confident of their investments,” he added.

     

    What’s more, even with popularity of Bollywood world over and 100 per cent FDI, none of that money comes to India. “There is no venture capital environment here,” said Cinema Capital Advisory managing director and founder Samir Gupta.

     

    Investors, according to Gupta, look for incentivised markets and so the government should be working at giving more incentives, if not at the central level, but at the state level. “There should be a legal framework for states, which can help them grow,” he said.

     

    India is a tough market for animation movies, feels Kapur. “Audiences are used to watching animated content on TV for free, and so it is very difficult to get them to buy a movie ticket worth Rs 300 for an animated movie.” Another reason why animation movies have not grown in the country, Kapur opines that it lies in the fact that Indian filmmakers are not good storytellers when it comes to animation.

     

    The panel also felt that there is a need for a uniform tax situation in the country. “Overall Goods and Services Tax (GST) is definitely a positive,” said Kapur. According to the panelists, in a uniform GST regime, entertainment tax will get subsumed into it, and this will be a complete game changer.