Preparing your customers and your facilities for Blu-ray

1
Preparing your customers and your facilities for
Blu-ray

• A powerful format that leads to new challenges in
  authoring and creative design

2
Exceeding expectations

• After several years of development, consumer and
  industry expectations are high
• DVD was a leap in complexity, BD will be as well
• Expect a transition to happen over the next year
  in how titles are developed
• The best products are expected to have not only
  great picture and sound, but also added value
  that drives product sales

3
Blu-ray data structure
4
DVD vs. Blu-ray

• Mature authoring tools
• Ubiquitous MPEG2 video
• Mature audio codecs
• Mature subtitles creation
• Little or no programming possible
• Mature QC processes
• Creative design built around DVD capability

• New authoring tools
• New compression codecs
• New audio codecs
• New subtitles
• New programming environment
• New QC complexity
• New creative process with many possibilities

5
SPE authoring tool development
6
The current DVD world with PAL and NTSC
compression

• At present, most Film based DVD content sold in
  Europe plays 4 fast in order to manage the
  difference between 24fps film and 25fps PAL video
• This affects the consumer experience, the video
  speed is not noticed, but correspondent change in
  audio pitch is obvious
• Studios have to conform elements and compress
  video for both NTSC and PAL standards adding cost
  and complexity to DVD manufacturing

7
The European standard

• Movies can and should be encoded to one standard
  - worldwide
• EICTA HD ready sanctioning body
• http//www.eicta.org/files/LicenseAgreement-114914
  A.pdf
• Basic Requirements (information copied from
  license agreement)
• The display device accepts HD input via
• Analog YPbPr and DVI or HDMI
• HD capable inputs accept
• 1280x720 _at_ 50 and 60 hz progressive (720p) and
  1920 x 1080 _at_ 50 and 60hz interlaced (1080i)
• The DVI or HDMI input supports content protection
  (HDCP)

8
Blu-ray Video Codecs

• AVC computation intensive, some LSI
  implementations exist, but typically uses blade
  servers
• VC1 also computation intensive, software
  implementations
• MPEG2 less efficient at very low bit rates, but
  equivalent performance at gt15mbps. Encoding and
  decoding readily available.
• Master tape quality results of tests

9
New audio codecs

• Both Dolby and DTS have new codecs included in
  Blu-ray
• Studios are already expressing interest in using
  lossless coding
• Decoding hardware needed before new codecs can be
  used

10
New subtitles

• HD resolutions
• Both Unicode and BMP available
• 256 colors available excellent anti-aliasing
• New standards for delivery
• New methods of delivery network

11
BD-J A programmable environment

• Blu-ray provides an implementation of Java that
  can be used to create newer forms of disc
  interactivity
• DVD authoring and BD-J authoring are not the same
  skill set
• Game / web development skills are converging with
  packaged media development
• Keeping order spiraling complexity

12
Blu-ray Movie Mode

• Similar to DVD functions with improvements
• Ideal for first titles
• Can provide a better user experience than DVD
• The first step in player development and
  compatibility
• Low level conventions are used in BD-J

13
QC for Blu-ray

• What display
• Consider scaling artifacts full resolution
  avoids this
• Screen size, two to three picture heights
• Professional versus Consumer devices
• Interlace artifacts should allowances be made?
• Interactive disc QC
• Network connection
• Game style capability

14
The creative process

• Balancing improved performance and graphic
  complexity
• Re-educating the industry on what can be
  accomplished
• Providing better tools to eliminate redundancy
• Balancing format capability with time to market

15
Priorities before the first order

• Staffing - Blu-ray has capabilities through Java
  programming that are not in the typical skill set
  of most DVD tool users
• Video encoding MPEG2 encoders are available and
  can do an outstanding job for this application.
  Adoption of alternative codecs may not be needed
  for a while
• Data handling can your network and storage
  systems handle HD?
• Quality control How will you check HD video?
  Display choices are limited.

16
Launch timing (estimated)
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
NOV
DEC
- BD players in market
- BD software in market
- BD software with Java based navigation
-BD player/software network usage
- BD authoring in progress from Nov 05
Demand for software and players
On time!
17
Summary

• Blu-ray will launch in the Spring the time to
  prepare for compression and authoring is now
• 24p encoding worldwide is a win win
• Consumer broadcast experience with HD is uneven,
  packaged media should set the benchmark again
• The distinction between authoring games and
  authoring movies will start to blur. Hiring for
  development and QC needs to adapt accordingly