February 28, 2022
Technological demonstrations to collaboratively create business and entertainment services with 5G SA
Sony Corporation
KDDI Corporation
On February 28, 2022, Sony Corporation ("Sony") and KDDI Corporation ("KDDI") announced that they successfully held two technological demonstrations with 5G Standalone mobile network(*1) (henceforth referred to as "5G SA") for PlayStation® game streaming with and 8K live-streaming.
These demonstrations were conducted with Xperia™ smartphones.
Since January 2021, Sony and KDDI have been evaluating technologies to create new business use cases and entertainment services based on 5G SA (*2). The following demonstrations are also part of this initiative.
This demonstration involved network slicing (*3), which is a key feature of 5G SA.
The two demonstrations were conducted with real use cases in mind, and had a stable connection to decrease the chance of being affected by other services from the same network.
The game streaming demonstration confirmed that users can play their PlayStation®5 or PlayStation®4 games on a smartphone while away from home.
The 8K live streaming test demonstrated that users can participate in events remotely with a sense of immersion. The achievement of the 8K live streaming demonstration is planned to be utilized at the upcoming music event in March 2022, "SPACE SHOWER MUSIC AWARDS 2022" (sponsored by au 5G).
Sony and KDDI will continue to pursue initiatives for creating new services in the era of 5G SA.
<5G SA game streaming>
As a use case, Sony and KDDI envisioned remote playing, where users play their PlayStation® games on a smartphone while they’re outside. An Xperia™ smartphone outside a building (assuming the user is outside) and a PlayStation inside the building (assuming it’s at home) were linked via 5G SA. They were connected with network slices for game streaming that were customized to enable high-definition game graphics to ensure stable connection.
Results confirmed that the smartphone connected with network slices dedicated for game streaming was able to play PlayStation® games with advanced graphics more smoothly and stably than smartphones connected to ordinary slices.
<5G SA event>
This demonstration envisioned a feeling of unity between performers at an event venue and the audience at a satellite location through interactions such as calls and responses.
Using Xperia™ smartphones as 8K video data receivers and transmitters, the camera at the event venue and the large display at the satellite location were connected by designated special network slices for 5G SA live streaming. They achieved live streaming of super high-definition videos.
This test envisioned virtually experiencing the immersive atmosphere from an event venue.
The event venue and satellite location were connected using special network slices for 5G SA live streaming. The footage was converted into 8K VR videos (3D and 180°), and the videos were sent to a visual headset (Xperia View) at the satellite location.