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After Conquering the Movies, 3-D Viewing Makes Its Way Toward Home TVs
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By PAUL SONNE and SAM SCHECHNER
With 3-D movies popping up more frequently at the cinema, several companies are working through significant challenges to make 3-D viewing available in the home too.
Satellite-TV operator British Sky Broadcasting PLC is preparing to debut a 3-D television channel in the U.K. next year that will require specially-equipped TV sets. The venture may be the most ambitious yet toward a large-scale 3-D television rollout, which remains absent from most big markets outside of Japan.
In the U.S., satellite-TV provider DirecTV Group Inc. and cable network owner Discovery Communications Inc., among others, are working on or exploring 3-D offerings, spokesmen said. Though 3-D TV programs have appeared sporadically for several decades, the media companies are hoping new 3-D technology can transform the medium from its gimmicky past into a viable experience for the home.David Naranjo, director of product development for Mitsubishi Digital Electronics America, predicted the U.S. could see its first high-definition 3-D channel as early as next year.
British Sky Broadcasting has filmed some sports matches in 3-D trials, as well as a performance of 'Swan Lake,' above.
But bringing 3-D programming into the living room comes with several obstacles. Some programming, including Sky's, will require expensive 3-D-ready television sets. There is still no agreement on a standard format for broadcasting or storing movies and TV shows on discs. And 3-D glasses are needed in most versions under development. Some media companies aren't eager to invest in 3-D technology so soon after upgrading to high definition production, while others, such as Sky, have used their investments in digital HD to move forward with 3-D.
High-definition 3-D-ready TVs currently fetch between $1,000 and $5,000 in the U.S. Mitsubishi, Samsung Electronics Co., and Hyundai IT Corp. already offer 3-D-ready HDTVs, which require separate stereo glasses and infrared emitters. Mr. Naranjo estimates there are five million sets now installed in the U.S. that can display 3-D programming. Sky executives say they expect to see the first 3-D-equipped TVs in the British market next year. Like theater owners who see 3-D films such as this month's "Final Destination" and James Cameron's forthcoming sci-fi epic "Avatar" as a way to lure more customers to their big-screen cinemas, TV operators see the format as a way to strengthen their hold on consumers. Wendy Aylsworth, senior vice president of technology at Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros. Technical Operations, predicts 3-D will be the "next big thing in television" despite the seven or so formats vying for industry support.
"Everybody has an interest in getting it there," she said. "Studios see more content being sold, TV manufacturers see more television sets being sold, and distributors see more viewers." Ms. Aylsworth said she expected 3-D TV programming to be widely accessible in the U.S. by 2011.
Like Real Life -- Sort Of
U.S. TV networks have flirted with 3-D for years.
January 1989
NBC's Super Bowl halftime show, dubbed 'Bebop Bamboozled,' included 3-D effects that required special glasses to see, including Frisbees that appeared to come out of the screen. 'It was a little like watching a football halftime show in the distorted reflection of an old mirror,' the Associated Press said at the time.
May 1994
Fox aired a 3-D episode of 'Married with Children.'
May 1997
For one week, ABC put nine of its shows in 3-D, including 'Home Improvement,' 'Coach,' 'Spin City,' 'Family Matters' and 'America's Funniest Home Videos.' A few weeks later, NBC aired a 3-D season finale of 'Third Rock from the Sun.'
August 2000
Discovery Channel kicked off its annual Shark Week with 'Sharks 3-D,' which included scenes where sharks appeared to jump off the screen. 'More like 2.5-D,' wrote Washington Post TV critic Tom Shales.
November 2005
NBC aired a 3-D episode of psychic drama 'Medium.'
February 2009
NBC showed a 3-D episode of dork-turned-spy series 'Chuck,' the day after the Super Bowl it aired included two 3-D advertisements.
--Sam SchechnerSky executives so far haven't specified what programs will be offered in 3-D or the cost of the subscription service. In the U.K., the company's most important content comes from a deal to air soccer matches in England's Premier League. Sky has already filmed soccer, boxing, and rugby matches in 3-D trials, as well as a performance of "Swan Lake" by the English National Ballet.
Its decision to move forward with 3-D programming came as the company found a way to use existing HD cameras and delivery systems to create a high-quality three-dimensional feed, said Gerry O'Sullivan, director of strategic product development at Sky.
Sky plans to film and deliver its own exclusive 3-D content using existing HD set-top boxes used by more than 1.3 million of its pay-TV customers in the U.K.
News Corp., which owns The Wall Street Journal, holds a 39% stake in BSkyB.
To film the 3-D footage, Sky will use a special rig with two normal HD cameras, one capturing video for the right eye and the other for the left. Producers will then package the two feeds together so that home set-top boxes think they're playing normal HD video. With the glasses and a special TV, however, the images will appear in 3-D.
Sky's transmission format, which requires bandwidth capable of handling the equivalent of two hefty HD feeds, is likely too large for competing cable providers to offer. Some British rivals fear that Sky will set a de facto standard for 3-D formatting that will be impossible for others to match, said Richard Lindsay-Davies, director general of Digital TV Group, an industry association for digital television in the U.K.
In the U.S., the Society for Motion Picture and Television Engineers is working on a standard for 3-D TV broadcasts, as individual companies explore their own options. Discovery, for instance, said it is working with manufacturers including Panasonic and Sony Corp. to refine technologies for shooting in 3-D. It is considering making a 3-D test episode of one of its series, such as slow-motion photography showcase "Time Warp," executives said.
Discovery executives are also considering what it would take for viewers to adopt the technology. "It's something that intuitively everyone would like," said David Zaslav, Discovery's chief executive. "But the question is will it be exciting enough that people will go through the trouble of wearing TV glasses at home?"
Write to Sam Schechner at sam.schechner@wsj.com
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