Roland-Garros in native UHD on DTT
With just a few days to go before the French Open, of which France Télévisions is the historic partner, viewers will be able to enjoy an extraordinary immersive experience. The matches on the main courts will be filmed in Ultra High Definition (UHD) quality and broadcast on France 2 UHD (DTT channel 52), available free of charge on Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT).
UHD / 4K technology offers viewers an image definition four times greater than High Definition, but also an improved contrast ratio (HDR), a wider color range, a higher frame rate and more immersive sound.
DVB-T2 and HEVC broadcasting and compression standards will be used, offering higher performance than current DTT standards.
Nearly 50 million people, or 3 out of 4 French people, located in broadcasting areas, can receive this exceptional picture and sound quality, as long as they are equipped with a compatible TV set*.
In 2024, the arrival of UHD required the deployment of specific, dedicated facilities on each DTT transmitter concerned. Thanks to its mobilization and mastery of large-scale worksites, TDF completed the UHD rollout at its selected sites in mainland France and overseas territories in record time, including the emblematic Eiffel Tower, Besançon-Montfaucon, Bordeaux-Bouliac, Rennes-Saint Pern and Marseille-Etoile.
DTT on the move with 5G Broadcast
During the tournament, France Télévisions' programs will be broadcast by TDF using 5G Broadcast technology: mobile reception tests will be carried out inside the stadium. This new full-scale experiment conducted by TDF, in partnership with France Télévisions, heralds a major evolution in tomorrow's Digital Terrestrial Television. 5G Broadcast is now available on a wider range of compatible smartphones, including four models from three manufacturers. Thanks to this technology, within three years it will be possible to watch television outdoors on your smartphone, free of charge, without using mobile data or Wi-Fi, and with exceptional quality, just like DTT.
TDF, technological pioneer of the DTT platform
Free, anonymous, freely accessible and of the highest quality, the DTT platform is a major mode of television reception in France, with coverage of 97% of the population.
It's also a less energy-intensive, and therefore more environmentally-friendly, way of receiving television than via the Internet.
For many years, TDF has been working alongside TV channels, equipment manufacturers and other industry players to reinvent DTT broadcasting and enable it to integrate the latest image, sound and interactivity technologies. UHD and 5G Broadcast are among the key areas in this evolution.
Pascale Varnière, General Manager of TDF's Audiovisual BU, said:
"DTT allows everyone in France to watch television free of charge, anywhere in the country, without the need for a subscription or an Internet connection. It's a simple, ecological and accessible broadcasting method, which TDF continues to develop. With France Télévisions, we are delighted to be broadcasting the tournament in ultra high definition (UHD 4K), enabling a large number of viewers to follow live tennis matches with exceptional image quality. And tomorrow, thanks to our increasingly demanding 5G Broadcast experiments, it will also be possible to watch DTT on the move and outdoors live on your smartphone. We are committed, alongside the channels, to modernizing DTT to adapt to the new uses of viewers and their expectations".
Jacques Donat-Bouillud, Director of Distribution at France Télévisions, comments:
"As a long-standing partner of Roland-Garros, France Télévisions is committed to constantly improving its offer to enable its audience to experience the Tournament even more intensely. With our partner TDF, we are now available in UHD via DTT, accessible to over 70% of the population and on all set-top boxes. As part of our innovative approach, we will also be testing the broadcast of the tournament in 5G Broadcast to enable our viewers to enjoy a mobile experience in the very near future".
* To guide viewers, TDF has set up a section on its website dedicated to DTT reception in UHD: https: //www.tdf.fr/tnt-radio/recevoir-la-tnt/faq-tnt-uhd-4k/