Eurosport 3D Channel
From now until June 6, Eurosport will air all matches from centre court (Court Philippe Chartier) at the Roland Garros venue in Paris using new 3D technology.
Under a deal with Panasonic, the broadcast is being beamed to 3,000 Panasonic-accredited retailers throughout Europe, including sites in the UK. The feed is also being streamed directly to Orange IPTV customers in France.
Speaking at a press event, Eurosport’s technical representative Vincent Gerard-Hirne said that the firm chose a 12Mbps feed because it is the “closest to what we can deliver in reality”.
He said that the 3D service is currently just for Roland Garros, but Eurosport’s technical team is now “ready to make a channel”.
Jacques Reynaud, Eurosport vice chairman, said that 3D at Roland Garros is “not a marketing gimmick”, but a “step forward in the way people watch TV”.
He said that Eurosport Live 3D would be deliverable directly to existing high definition set top boxes, just as Sky has done with its 3D channel.
However, it is understood that Eurosport presently considers 3D to be an event-led viewing experience that is not at this stage suited to a full linear channel.
The broadcaster also believes that there is still room for development in superfast HD, or Ultra HD technology, but it may forge ahead with a full launch of Eurosport Live 3D in 2011 if there is strong enough consumer demand for 3D-ready television sets.
For all the latest 3D TV developments make sure you come back to Total 3D as much as possible as we chart the progress of this emerging technology.
Category: 3D TV
