New Ikegami USA President/CEO Toshihisa Mitsuoka: 4K, 8K Are ‘at the Forefront of Our Plans’

Company plans to launch UHK-435 camera at IBC2017

Earlier this year, when Ikegami USA announced Toshihisa Mitsuoka as its new president/CEO, it signaled to the industry that the company is pleased with its development as a leader in 4K — and even 8K — growth in the U.S. broadcast market.

Ikegami USA’s Toshihisa Mitsuoka is bullish on the next-gen market in the Americas.

Mitsuoka, who is called Toshi by many of his industry colleagues, has nearly 25 years of experience with the company, about 15 of those years in the U.S. He has also had a deep focus on the broadcast market, positioning Ikegami technology to play major roles in 4K and 8K experiments at such major events as the Super Bowl and last summer’s Rio Olympics.

In his new role, Mitsuoka, who most recently served as assistant to Ikegami USA’s previous president, aims to maintain Ikegami’s position as an innovator in imaging.

“We’re very focused on bringing the latest technology to the forefront,” he explains. “4K and 8K cameras are at the forefront of our development plan.”

Although adoption of 4K broadcast technology has been slower to develop in the U.S. than in Ikegami’s home country of Japan, Mitsuoka and other company execs are bullish on the next-gen market in the Americas. He notes that “4K is being requested across the board, at least as a future-proof [option]. There are few major purchasers that are not asking for 4K.”

The desire to future-proof has bolstered the popularity of the SHK-810, Ikegami’s fourth-generation 8K camera. At IBC2017 in Amsterdam next month, the company plans to debut the latest addition to its UNICAM XE series: the UHK-435 promises to be the world’s first ⅔-in. 3-CMOS-sensor 4K/HD studio camera.