TV personality Tefconn and models pitch “U+ Idol Ive” app 5G service LG Uplus has recently introduced. (Photo: LG Uplus)

LG Uplus is adding live broadcasts of K-pop idol group performances to its portfolios the telecom service provider’s “killer content” in the 5G era.

The telecom service provider released “U+ Idol Live” app 5G service to show K-pop idol group performances at the LG Uplus Building in Yongsan, Seoul, on Oct. 18.

One function lets users choose idol members they want to watch.
It will be made available in an era of 5G, in which data transmission amounts soar 20 times more than the current 4G.

Live broadcasts of idol groups’ performances will be aired simultaneously. A maximum of three members of each idol group can be appreciated on a smartphone.

Camera-by-camera videos of filming in front, left, right and behind are offered, so fans can choose the angles they want to watch. The U+ Idol Live app 5G service also allows users to retrieve videos they failed to catch live.

Koo Tae-hyung, in charge of mobile service at LG Uplus, said under the conventional 4G regime, idol group performances can be seen live in high-definition videos and three screens, but the 5G network will allow super high-definition videos, five or more screens, super high-definition VR and AR functions.

LG Uplus plans to upgrade the service to allow viewers to appreciate more vivid moments of idol group performances. “2D 360 VR Video” in which videos are filmed by circulating 360 degrees from the stage and audiences’ seats and “3D VR Video” in which viewers feel as if idol groups perform in front of them will be added starting December. U+tv outfitted with “U+ Idol Live” app offers bigger videos in the conventional TV.

A survey of idol fans in their teens and 20s, conducted by LG Uplus, showed that 38 percent of respondents replied that they watched idol group performances and videos. Forty-five percent of respondents answered that they watched idol group videos for more than one hour daily and the percentage of respondents who said they spent more than three hours daily stood at 7 percent. Respondents said they wanted to see their favorite groups’ live videos, rather than those edited by conventional music broadcasting networks.

The release of “U+ Idol Live” app 5G service follows sport video services such U+Pro Baseball and U+Golf that made their debut in the first half of this year. The moves are designed to expand their customer base ranging from peoples in more than 30s to one in their 10s and 20s.

Vice President Park Jong-wook, head of the Mobile Service Business at LG Uplus said the telecom service provider, leading 5G video service content innovation through sports broadcasting, will establish a service portfolio to catch the hearts of people in their 10s and 20s.

The latest service, targeting the upcoming commercialization of 5G network, will be added with more next year.

The “U+ Idol Live” app can be downloaded for free via smartphone web markets such as Google’s PlayStore and WonStore regardless of telecom service providers. An iOs app will be uploaded in early November.