Panasonic chief Kazuhiro Tsuga introduces the company's new 4K OLED 56'' television during the Panasonic opening day keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Credit: Reuters/Rick Wilking
The service will begin from
communications satellites, followed by satellite broadcasting and ground digital broadcasting, the report said.
The 4K TVs, which boast four times the resolution of current high-definition TVs, are now on sale by Japanese makers including Sony Corp (6758.T), Panasonic (6752.T) and Sharp Corp (6753.T). Other manufacturers include South Korea's LG Electronics (066570.KS).
Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications had aimed to kick-start the 4K TV service in 2016. That has been brought forward to July 2014, when the final match of the 2014 football World Cup is set to take place in Brazil, the Asahi report said.
In Japan, the development of super high-definition 8K TVs is in progress, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications plans to launch the test 8K TV broadcast in 2016, two years ahead of schedule, it said.