Picture quality might be an issue for HKTV

Telecommunication veterans have questioned whether Ricky Wong Wai-kay's internet television service will be able to match the picture quality of conventional free-to-air broadcasts.

Two months after the government rejected the bid by Wong's Hong Kong Television Network for a free-to-air TV licence, the station announced plans to launch internet and mobile services next July.

According to HKTV's announcement, three to five channels will be broadcast live and viewers will be able to watch them on the internet or their mobile devices.

The internet system works on any device that can browse the web, while the mobile system requires no internet connection but needs a special receiver to be plugged into television sets or mobile devices.

HKTV has yet to announce the video quality of mobile broadcasts. But China Mobile Hong Kong, which has been acquired by HKTV, has adopted a standard called China Mobile Multimedia Broadcasting (CMMB).

It broadcasts programmes at a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels for its existing station UTV, equivalent to the video quality option of 240p on YouTube, said Francis Fong Po-kiu, president of the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation.

It is far from the best quality, as YouTube allows high-definition videos of up to 1920 x 1080 pixels, the 1080p option. TVB and ATV also provide high-definition channels.