From HD to 3D to 4K – how TV is changing broadband, and vice versa

The way we watch TV is changing. Before it was all quite simple: TV in the living room for broadcast programmes, computer (whether laptop or PC) somewhere else for the internet. Smart TVs and online video content began to blur the boundaries, and now television and the internet are becoming even more entwined.

A whole range of new media streaming services, such as Netflix, NowTV and LoveFilm, are taking off on the back of increased broadband speeds. Now set top boxes come bundled with browsers to integrate catch up, real-time and on demand content, like BBC iPlayer and 4OD. And this content is increasingly available in high definition.

But as we start to take control of when and how we watch TV – and the content gets bigger and bigger in terms of HD and 3D – it starts to squeeze our broadband capacity. Something has to give. So you either go back to scheduling who can get online when, or you step up to fibre broadband, to let everyone get on with it without groaning about buffering – and still have plenty of bandwidth in reserve.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Remember when flatscreen TVs were the stuff of science fiction, available to a few wealthy individuals to hang from their ceilings (for some reason)? Now they’re commonplace. They used to cost thousands of pounds – not any more.

And remember when TVs were HD ready? The numbers of channels and programmes shown in HD has rocketed recently and some people will now refuse to slum it with standard def!

The first generation of 4K TVs are now being showcased in shiny department stores. The screens these TVs use are four times the resolution of full HD (4096 x 2160 pixels compared to 1920 x 1080). In layman’s terms, it means you can get a massive TV in your home, sit closer to it and still be blown away by the level of detail on display. They cost thousands just now, but they’ll quickly come down in price. And the BBC is already filming programmes in this new ultra HD standard.

But all this data to produce all these pictures needs bandwidth. And that means beefing up your broadband so it doesn't hamper the potential for everyone in the home to get online and stream what they want, when they want.