17-Aug-2010 by John Moulding
Having launched the UK’s first industry consultation on 3DTV with its members last year, the DTG (Digital TV Group – Stand 5.A45 at IBC), the industry association for digital television in the UK, is taking a central role in developing this nascent market. Here, Simon Gauntlett, Technology Director at the DTG, discusses the future of 3D delivery technology, including whether broadcasters want a 3DTV solution that enables one stream to feed both 2D and 3D televisions, to avoid simulcasting a 3D and 2D version, and whether Frame Compatible 3DTV can deliver a high enough picture quality to meet expectations.
Q: What is your general impression of how public and commercial broadcasters (non subscription channels) view 3DTV today? Are they worried about the cost of delivering 3DTV?
A: There is an apparent increased interest in 3DTV from both public and commercial broadcasters.
Q: Do they need a 3DTV solution that enables one stream to feed both 2D and 3D televisions, to avoid simulcasting a 3D and 2D version?
A: Currently, several broadcasters are saying that a separate production chain is needed to ensure the highest quality 3D experience for the consumer. At the moment a simulcast of 2D/3D would not be possible as they do not currently display the same content.
However, in the future it may be that the production communities will find compromises that work for both 2D and 3D as it will not be sustainable to have two production chains going forward. Then, a mechanism to efficiently deliver both a 2D and 3D version of the content could be discussed.
Q: Is there a likelihood that non subscription broadcasters could wait for this kind of solution, or will that take too long – forcing them to simulcast meanwhile?
A: In the short term, it will be unlikely that a non-subscription broadcaster will have enough 3D content to launch a complete channel. Therefore, these content providers could wait for a solution that allows switching from 2D to 3D on an event basis, and find an efficient mechanism to deliver it.
Q: Is Frame Compatible going to deliver enough video quality for a ‘premium service’ market (e.g. for Pay TV or major broadcasters). Is this viewed as a ‘good enough is good enough’ solution for 3DTV and for how long?
A: Frame Compatible is an efficient method for Pay TV broadcasters to use their existing deployed HD receivers to deliver 3D content. The quality of Frame Compatible has been shown to be more than adequate for the vast majority of providers. There have been proposals from industry for mechanisms to increase the resolution of both Frame Compatible and Service Compatible so in the future we may see an evolution of both modes.
The DTG publishes and maintains the technical specification for the UK’s Freeview and Freeview HD platforms (the D-Book) and runs the digital television industry’s test centre. They will be on stand 5.A45 at IBC.
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