The tournament is the sporting event of the year and will hit our television screens in 2018 in a quality that no-one in Switzerland has ever experienced before. Swisscom TV customers will be able to follow the World Cup games on SRG channels (SRF, RTS and RSI) for the first time in amazing Ultra-High Definition (UHD) resolution and HDR. If your TV has “High Dynamic Range” rendering (HDR) in combination with UHD, you will immediately notice a visible leap in image quality. While UHD quadruples the number of pixels displayed in comparison with HD, HDR provides contrast levels that are 15 times greater than before as well as a much higher colour spectrum. With this technology, images are not only sharper, but also feature a noticeable visual depth for the first time ever.
"It’s as if you’re actually sat watching the game in the stadium. HDR creates an effect that is similar to the jump in quality from analogue TVs to HD TVs, particularly for football broadcasts,” explains Dirk Wierzbitzki, Head of Products & Marketing and a member of the Group Executive Board of Swisscom. However, HDR requires complex technical measures to be implemented by the individual stations and broadcasters, which is why Swisscom and SRG are working closely together to provide viewers with a particularly vivid football experience. The only thing that Swisscom customers need to view HDR TV is a UHD-enabled Swisscom TV Box and a compatible TV set.
"Swisscom will also start displaying useful additional information in the TV menu, with this service being launched to coincide with the kick-off of the new football season. This will allow fans to read up on the background information to fixtures before and during games, such as background reports, team line-ups, information on individual players and other tournament developments. “Such information is always sought after by fans and they have up until now found it on the Internet, via teletext or in newspapers. We have taken a whole new approach in preparing this content exclusively for Swisscom TV viewers,” said Dirk Wierzbitzki. The new dossiers will be created in collaboration with the Bluewin editorial team and will also be provided for the broadcast of UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League fixtures, which will be shown in Switzerland on Teleclub from 21 August. Swisscom customers will not miss a single game. Every match will be available to watch on Swisscom TV, either as part of the customer subscription package or on a pay-per-view basis. Some of the games will also be broadcast on free TV, i.e. on the new Teleclub Zoom channel, which will be the only Swiss channel to show the UEFA Champions League final from the next season onwards. And best of all, Swiss viewers can for the first time watch every game live and with German commentary. “If you have ever watched a game without commentary, you know how useful it is,” states Dirk Wierzbitzki.
“With the FIFA World Cup being shown in HDR, as well as fixtures from the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, Raiffeisen Super League, Brack.ch Challenge League, Serie A TIM and other football leagues from around the world, Swisscom TV will thus be the home of football for every fan in Switzerland,” enthuses Dirk Wierzbitzki. From August onwards, Teleclub Sport will also be able to be ordered as a single package for Swisscom TV customers at a price of CHF 29.90 per month, including HD.
There is also a great deal on offer for those who don’t like football too, as the best movies and series from the selected Teleclub package will be available with Teleclub Now and exclusively on Swisscom TV from August, too. Viewers will also be able to watch these on a pay-per-view basis without any additional costs. Dirk Wierzbitzki: “Unlike the final phase of the Raiffeisen Super League, we are not left with the question of which of Berne, Basel or St. Gallen will come out on top – with Swisscom TV, the whole of Switzerland wins.”
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