On April 19, BOE collaborated with the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) to live broadcast Lin Zexu, the opening drama of the “NCPA Live” campaign, at more than 20 theaters and 100 cinemas across the country synchronously.
UPTC, a subsidiary of BOE, provided full-linkage solutions for the live broadcast, including the “theater-to-theater” dual-chain integrated cloud broadcast control platform across multiple networks, the U-Station integrated broadcast control terminal for decoding and decryption, and the U-Stage digital stage display system. This cutting-edge ULive technology system enabled a wide-ranging live broadcast featuring the involvement of a great many theaters and cinemas and sophisticated technology processes. It marks another collaborative innovation between BOE and the NCPA to integrate technology and culture, bringing high art closer to the public and injecting new vitality into the digitalization of culture.
Lin Zexu, which premiered in 2019, is an NCPA drama co-produced with the Guangzhou Dramatic Arts Center. The drama features the Chinese hero Lin Zexu (1785–1850) who led anti-opium campaigns in the Qing Dynasty. ULive is the industry’s first full-linkage 8K UHD solution developed by UPTC based on its world’s first fleet of 8K+5G+22.2 UHD stereo Outside Broadcast (OB) trucks and whole-process technology system covering production, broadcasting, distribution, and broadcast control. This industry-leading solution boasts a rich set of features such as 8K production and broadcasting, high-reliability multi-network integrated data transmission, high-level copyright protection, and immersive UHD audiovisual presentation, delivering ultra-clear, realistic, and fully immersive viewing experiences to audiences around the country.
Seamless live broadcast
Leveraging its high-performance codec device cluster, self-developed cloud broadcast control system, and dual-chain multi-network integrated broadcast terminal, the ULive solution control helps establish a “theater-to-theater” UHD production and distribution system for broadcasting nationwide. Dynamic optimizations are performed based on the network conditions of each theater, ensuring uninterrupted and seamless live broadcast to audiences across multiple locations at the same time.
Immersive UHD viewing experiences
Thanks to the ULive professional display system, audiences who are physically absent can enjoy ultimate, immersive UHD experiences as if they were seated in the VIP area at the live venue. This time UPTC collaborated with the NCPA to deploy a professional display system for live broadcast at the Beijing Performing Arts Center and other locations. This system is armed with a combination of state-of-the-art technologies, featuring 33 million pixels, up to 7,680Hz refresh rate, and 22-bit greyscale. It delivers vivid and true-to-life colors and deep and subtle dark scenes on the stage, and fully presents the exquisite stage design and delicate details of the performance, pushing the boundaries of live broadcast technology.
Exclusive bonus content
With the help of UPTC, audiences in different regions, spanning from China’s southernmost Hainan province to Xinjiang in the western part of the country, watched the drama in sync with those at the NCPA in Beijing. Furthermore, these audiences were entitled to exclusive bonus content such as pre-broadcast introduction by creators and behind-the-scenes footage, giving them an enriched, whole new experience.
BOE, a global leader in the UHD field, is committed to promoting the development and application of UHD technology. It has created a patent portfolio regarding live broadcast and provided viable solutions to advance the digitalization of culture. BOE has joined forces with Panjiayuan Subdistrict in Beijing to build the country’s first community-level digital UHD audiovisual space, blazing a trail in bringing high-quality art resources to the public. With the deepening of cooperation with top-notch cultural institutions like the NCPA, BOE will continuously enhance its capabilities across the entire chain of content collection, transmission, and presentation, promote the adoption of advanced audiovisual solutions, and foster more innovative practices for the digitalization of public cultural services. The goal is to contribute to building a nationwide cultural resource sharing network.
From the world’s first “8K+5G” live stage art broadcast jointly with the NCPA in 2020 to the extensive “NCPA Live” campaign, BOE has continuously implemented “technology + culture” innovative practices and solidified its full-chain leading position in the UHD field. Going forward, BOE will continue working with partners in the cultural world to foster new quality productive forces for digital culture, and set new benchmarks for deeper integration of the UHD audiovisual industry and the culture sector