Sky Launching New Set-Top Box With 4K UHD

18 Nov, 2015 By: Erik Gruenwedel

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Seeking to augment the pay-TV experience, British satellite TV operator Sky Nov. 18 unveiled a new line of set-top boxes that double as broadband hot spots, feature a 1 terabyte hard disk drive, and accommodate 4K ultra high-definition digital content.

Dubbed Sky Q, the new box — which bows next year in the United Kingdom and Ireland — gives subscribers greater access to live, recorded or on-demand content. Recorded content can also be accessed via portable devices, including tablets via Bluetooth and Apple Airplay.

Sky Q will be Ultra HD ready in advance of the launch of the new HD format later in 2016. The service will offer subscribers sports, movies, and entertainment content with picture quality up to four times the clarity of 1080p.

The new box also features technology called “fluid viewing,” which enables subscribers to pause content on the TV screen and continue watching on a different TV or tablet — up to five screens around the home while recording four other channels.

Sky Q allows subs to watch videos from YouTube, music videos from the Vevo app and stream over-the-top video. Initial streaming partners include Condé Nast Entertainment such as GQ, Vanity Fair, Vogue and Wired, GoPro, Jukin Media, Kin Community, Red Bull Media House and Whistle Sports.

“We wanted to re-imagine TV so that it’s flexible and seamless across different screens and puts a huge choice of entertainment at [subscriber] fingertips,” Sky CEO Jeremy Darroch said in a statement.

 

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