[Satellite News 01-06-10] ESPN has revealed plans to launch ESPN 3D, a dedicated 3-D HD network, which will showcase a minimum of 85 live sporting events during its first year, including the first 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer match featuring South Africa vs. Mexico.
    "ESPN’s commitment to 3-D is a win for fans and our business partners," ABC Sports President George Bodenheimer said in a statement, released Jan. 5.
    ESPN’s 3-D debut and its association with big-name events were matched by Discovery Communications, Sony and IMAX, which signed a non-binding letter of intent to establish a joint venture to develop their own 3D television network in the United States.
    The lastest developments from U.S. networks comes a bit sooner than expected. In a September interview with Via Satellite, Ian Trow, director of broadcast solutions for Harmonic, said that his company was taking a cautious approach to 3-D technology and that he believed it will take some time before 3-D becomes accepted in the home.
    “The cinema and home viewing environments are very, very different. Delivery to the cinema is far easier than delivery to the home, especially when you take into account the infrastructure put into place for HD. This is a big challenge technologically and standards-wise to get the same kind of experience people appreciate in the cinema to the home. BSkyB and ESPN are experimenting with it, and for good reason, because if you can make it work, it’s a good draw, particularly for live event coverage. I think they probably will do it as an overlay to their existing infrastructure rather than proposing a new set-top box and new transmission systems," said Trow.
    Some satellite companies jumped on the 3-D bandwagon early. In March, Eutelsat Communications provided capacity on its Eurobird 3 satellite to broadcast a live music performance that was filmed, transmitted and projected in stereo 3-D HD on a cinema screen and on prototype models of stereo 3-D HDTVs. OpenSky managed the encoding, decoding and projection of the event, while dBw managed the shooting and production.
    In June, GlobeCast, in collaboration with Orange Labs, delivered a live 3-D HD feed of a performance of Don Giovanni from the Rennes Opera house in Brittany, France, via satellite to cinemas in France. The multi-camera operation, organized by Orange Labs and filmed by AMP, involved combining two video signals into a single feed using a Sensio 3-D Cinema encoder. A GlobeCast satellite newsgathering vehicle outside the opera house delivered the feed to a pair of cinemas in Paris, as well as theaters in Avignon and Brest.
    Earlier in 2009, IDC CEO Ron Clifton predicted that the major opportunities for satellite-delivered 3-D would be digital cinema, live events and direct-to-home. "2D direct-to-home networks are eager to go to 3-D. What is driving this is Hollywood is making a commitment to produce 3-D events. There is some frustration because theaters are not moving fast enough to take advantage of all this. Pretty soon, the home market guys will be wondering how to do it. The technology is there," said Clifton.
    While ESPN has yet to reveal the details of their new 3-D network set-up, its competitors have scrambled to show that organized strategies to roll-out services have been in the works in order to claim first place in the 3-D market race. Discovery, Sony and IMAX even outlined their responsibilities in their non-binding agreement.
    Discovery said it will provide network services, including affiliate sales and technical support functions, as well as 3-D television rights to Discovery content and cross-promotion across its portfolio of 13 U.S. television networks. Sony will provide advertising and sponsorship sales support, and will seek to license television rights to current and future 3-D feature films, music-related 3-D content and game-related 3-D content, while providing cross-promotion at retail stores. IMAX also will license television rights to future 3-D films, promotion through its owned-and-operated movie theaters across the U.S., and a suite of proprietary and patented image enhancement and 3-D technologies. Governance for the joint venture will be handled by a board of directors comprised of members from each of the three partners. The companies also said they would explore international distribution opportunities in selected markets in the future.
    ESPN said they have been testing ESPN 3D for more than two years, even showing a USC-Ohio State college football game in select theaters and to 6,000 fans at the Galen Center on USC’s campus. Regardless of who claims the pioneering role, ESPN now controls the tempo of the 3-D race, armed with its World Cup debut. "ESPN 3D marries great content with new technology to enhance the fan’s viewing experience and puts ESPN at the forefront of the next big advance for TV viewing,” said Bodenheimer.