Compare 3D TV

Consider this your warning: Ryan Seacrest could be jumping out of your television sooner than you think. Three-dimensional television service, typically discussed as a “sometime in the future” type of technology, is now being targeted for a 2009 rollout in the United Kingdom. A British communications provider says it’s already testing a 3D TV delivery system and could be ready to offer the protocol to the public within a matter of months. Could the US be far behind?

3D TV goal

The provider, Sky, made the revelation at an annual summit by the Digital TV Group in London. “Our aim is to refine 3D techniques and TV production and build a content library over the coming year,” Sky Chief Engineer Chris Johns explained.

Sky started testing its 3D TV technology last year and has broadcast several sporting events using the technology. The events were shot on two side-by-side cameras, and then merged together to create the three-dimensional effect. Viewers still needed special polarized glasses to see the action in 3D.

Device delay

The real problem now lies in the devices: Even if the service is available, regular TVs won’t be able to show the three-dimensional images. While 3D displays were a hot commodity at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in January – Panasonic showed off a 103-inch plasma set capable of showing customized 3D Blu-ray movies, and LG talked about a 3D chip set coming to its screens in the future – moving from the convention floor to the living room is anything but an overnight process.

Consider, for example, adoption of the current non-3D line of HDTVs: Though the devices have been available for years, less than a quarter of American households had a high-definition television at the end of 2008, according to data compiled by Nielsen. The analysis found that despite impressive growth rates, only 23.3 percent of American homes owned a high-def set as of November 30, 2008.

When it comes to high-definition movies, Blu-ray players are rapidly gaining momentum, too, with disc prices dropping to as low as US$10 and widespread adoption predicted within the current year. Still, the industry has yet to agree upon a standard protocol for 3D content within the medium, creating another roadblock that must be overcome before 3D TVs could gain mainstream market appeal.

Once those issues are addressed, though, it appears the broadcast side of the equation may be ready to go. In the meantime, you can always look at the newly created 3D baseball cards and yearn.

Television has evolved a long way since the first broadcast from Alexandra Palace in London more than 70 years ago. Broadcasts have switched from black and white to colour, fuzzy analogue pictures to high-definition digital screens, a single channel to hundreds of them.

The next step, the TV industry says, will be programmes transmitted in three dimensions, raising the prospect of sofa-bound sports fans ducking to avoid the football that just leapt out of the screen.

Sky said yesterday that it has developed the technology and infrastructure to beam 3D images to a television set. The company will continue to develop the project over the next few years, while the TV screens required to handle 3D television become more affordable and readily available, and programme makers and broadcasters film more of their content in 3D.

“We’re just exploring right now, but the next step is going to be to find out whether 3DTV is something people are going to be interested in,” Brian Lenz, the company’s head of product design and innovation, said.

If there is public appetite for this new experience, Sky – which is part-owned by News Corporation, the parent company of The Times – will roll out the service over the next few years and is likely to be the first broadcaster to offer channels with full 3D coverage.

The broadcaster demonstrated clips of sporting events filmed in 3D, including footage from a recent rugby international and Champions League football match.

The matches were shot using two cameras filming the action side-by-side. The new technology allows these two images to be merged and played out simultaneously on the same TV screen. Viewers wearing polarised glasses will see a different image with each eye, tricking the brain into believing that it is seeing a three-dimensional image.

Sky says that it will eventually be able to film and broadcast events live and in three dimensions.

Worldwide, there are similar moves to switch from 2D to 3D TV. An NFL American football match was recently broadcast live in 3D to a selection of audiences at cinemas across the US and in Japan, where 3D-capable TV screens are already readily available, cable stations are showing 3D programmes four times a day.

The race is on to create an affordable TV that can handle the 3D signal. Hyundai has released a model that works with polarised glasses and costs £2,500, about 25 per cent more than a comparable flat-screen television. Philips has created a 3D TV that does not require glasses, but it costs about £7,500.

The technology developed by Sky only works when viewers are wearing glasses.

In the meantime, broadcasters are hoping that studios will start producing more films and programmes in 3D. The signs are encouraging. Pixar, the animation studio that made Toy Story and The Incredibles, has announced that from next year all of its films will be rendered in 3D.