Stereoscopic Shortage: Where Will 3D Content Come From?

January 7, 2010 By Nick Mokey

3d-tv

Ready to spring on a 3D TV, but curious where you’ll find anything to watch? We examine what the content ecosystem sprouting before our eyes at CES.

Even if you managed to smuggle Samsung’s outstanding 3D-ready LED 9000 series HDTV off the show floor today – and trust us, we’ve thought about it – you might have a tough time actually appreciating any of its fancy 3D features. As it stands, consumers have very few ways to go about buying, downloading or creating 3D content. But with a tsunami of 3D-equipped televisions on the horizon, that’s about to change. We’ve broken down the places you’ll go for your stereoscopic fix in the coming year.

3D TV stations

As it stands, not a single station on the air delivers 3D content, but that will rapidly change in the coming months. ESPN, for instance, announced yesterday that it would launch a station dedicated to broadcasting live sporting events in true stereoscopic 3D. While it will only be active during these broadcasts, ESPN has a total of 85 on the roster so far, including matches from the 2010 FIFA World Cup. DirectTV and Panasonic also announced today that they’ve partnered to launch no less than three 3D stations this year. Two will offer linear content (with no control), while a third will actually operate on demand to deliver 3D content as you want to watch it. Sony, Discovery and IMAX have also teamed up to launch their own nature-theme 24-hour 3D channel, which could go live before the year comes to a close.

2D Content Converted to 3D

Here’s one source of 3D you might not have expected: Some 3D televisions will actually generate their own 3D content from standard, lifeless 2D video. Toshiba’s top-of-the-line Cell HDTVs will use the company’s TriVector technology to bring your old movies to life, while Samsung’s 9000 series LED HDTV will perform something similar. Neither company has really detailed the gears behind the process, but we suspect it uses the motion of objects on a static background to separate them out onto different planes. We hope to get more of the nitty gritty as the show carries on, but for now, both companies claim it’s possible.

Movies Shot in 3D on Blu-ray

Perhaps the most obvious source of 3D content will come from movies that were always intended for the 3D format. Dreamworks will launch Monsters vs. Aliens, for instance, as one of the first 3D Blu-ray discs, a format that was only finalized in December. Despite the late standard adoption, Toshiba, Sony, Panasonic and Samsung all have plans for 3D Blu-ray players.

Shooting Your Own 3D Films

If you’re a movie producer looking to shoot your next big film in 3D, or just an aristocrat looking to make the most sophisticated home movies ever, you might want to keep your eyes on Panasonic, which showed off the world’s first 3D camcorder this year. It will launch this fall with a price tag somewhere around $21,000, and record directly to SD cards. Accidents on America’s Funniest Home Videos will never be the same.

Showing 9 comments

John Mellberg at 12:39am 4th January 2011 What kind of TV content would you like to see in 3D...Please give us your ideas. Thanks John
spdr at 4:58am 31st August 2010 I heard there a street dance documentary being shot on 3d with all of the top , uk and usa street dancers, I think would be great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
james braselton at 2:31pm 5th May 2010 hi there you are right i have only found a few 3D apps for ipod touch 3D noon globe holo toy 3D super foot ball 3D wetaher globe and hot and cold for the nintendo dsi how do you expect 3D too sell with out 3D content and only 3D blue ray movie is out is alien vs monsters and probaly avatar too we need more 3D content may be nintendo 3DS will start ramping up 3D content
Bud Fox at 6:55pm 6th April 2010 I'm just not 100% sold on 3D in-the-home yet. I think that the overall viewing experience will suffer due to the novelty of 3D. I mean, as things sit, there are still people who think that bigger is better.... not realizing that the there are guidelines to follow when setting up a home theater. I think that throwing another element like 3D into the equation, will ultimately make for fewer properly set up home theaters.
Doug Stanley at 2:47pm 5th April 2010 As far as 3D content for Television Networks: The content situation is similar to the very dawn of television, when there was no 2D content. If you played everything that has ever been created and finished to a professional standard that "fits" in 3DTV, it would play out in weeks on one 3D Television Market.
Unlike the dawn of television, there are dozens of Billion dollar companies up to their eyeballs in this technology growth and distribution. There is so much support behind this now, that you can expect an exponential growth in this market. And that includes content. Expect to see an explosion in 3D content. Expect to see the quality increase. Most of all expect to see a major difference in how stories are told and how the images are is presented. Expect great things!
Doug Stanley
3D Film and Television
2008 Primetime Emmy Winner
Producer/Director of Photography
Discovery Channel's "Deadlest Catch", others.
Henry Villadiego at 12:00pm 14th January 2010 DreamWorks Animation has made a commitment to all their movies in stereoscopic and MvA should be the first of many 3D BD. Sony and Disney also announced 3D BD, but no word from Fox on Avatar. I blogged about it today on After the Transition
Samsung Lands DreamWorks in Monster 3-D Home Package Deal < Blu-Ray: http://wp.me/py8PO-kV
Remy at 9:46pm 10th January 2010 no problem with 3D content. Do you know 3DGuy and 3D Samurai? Their are 3D content providers. you may watch their demo reel in Youtube. Just key in "3D Samurai Demo Reel". Their demo reel is fabulous! It features amazing spots from Thailand and Japan!!
0neir0naut0 at 4:55pm 7th January 2010 I think you're missing one of the bigger ones: Console Gaming
facebook-2056632 at 12:40pm 7th January 2010 Check out ThirdMagazine.com when you get a chance, its a pretty good 3D blog that covers more than just film stuff.