Innovative IT Olympics
In the Gangneung Ice Arena on February 11, South Korean figure skater Choi Da-bin showed her performance in front of 100 cameras installed along the wall of the building. Her performance captured by the cameras was transmitted in real time to broadcasting stations and the ICT experience zone in the stadium via a 5G network. Immediately after the show, stop motions of every part of her performance were provided via the immersive media technology of Time Slice for catching a moment from various angles.
The technology is applied to short track races and ice hockey matches as well. The ice hockey stadium in Pyeongchang has 20 ceiling antennas for motion recognition and real-time data transmission and big air snowboarders in Pyeongchang wear shoes with sensors for rotation angle detection and so on.
During men’s 15km + 15km skiathlon, a 5G system was in operation so that viewers can check the locations of their favorite players and view their UHD images in real time. The ultra-precision GPS with a weight of 60 grams attached to each player’s uniform transmitted the player’s acceleration, ranking, speed and so on in real time. This technology is scheduled to be incorporated into personal mobile terminals in the near future.
These services are based on the world’s first 5G technology of KT, which is being tested in Pyeongchang. The technology, which is planned to be commercialized in South Korea next year, is 40 to 50 times faster than the LTE and the former’s processing capacity is 100 times larger than the latter’s. In Pyeongchang, KT set 5G networks to display immersive media technology like Omniview, Time Slice, 360 VR Live and SyncView. At the opening ceremony, 1,200 performers showed the Dove of Peace with LED lights and KT controlled the brightness of the lights by using its 5G network.
Also at the opening ceremony, Intel’s 1,218 drones drew the Olympic symbol in the night sky. Each of the Shooting Star drones, weighing just 330 grams, is equipped with an LED light and capable of creating more than four billion colors in combination with the others. The drones are controlled by just one pilot and with just one computer with a flight path input for each.
“The service focusing on uploading to transmit images from the viewpoint of athletes is the most impressive for me,” said NTT Docomo President Kazuhiro Yoshizawa. KT Chairman Hwang Chang-kyu remarked that KT would lead the commercialization of 5G services based on its close cooperation with partner companies and its experience in Pyeongchang. Alibaba Group Chairman Jack Ma commented that the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing will present a new and innovative vision of the Olympics.