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Broadcast Australia issues an OTA 3D Broadcast experience whitepaper

7.28.2010

3D or not 3D: The road ahead for TV – Whitepaper

(Comment: this whitepaper is a 3D broadcast primer and policy piece.)

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13 Jul 2010

Broadcast transmission specialist, Broadcast Australia, has today released a white paper which explores the challenge of establishing Australia’s new 3D TV environment, and highlights the importance of laying the foundations to ensure the country’s free-to-air broadcasting infrastructure is ready to deliver new and unique digital content.

The paper, entitled ‘3D or not 3D: The road ahead for TV’, provides insight into the current 3D TV environment, exploring the consumer proposition and drivers for deployment, as well as considering the various technology options, how they work, and what issues need to be addressed in order to make 3D TV successful.

To date, Broadcast Australia has played a central role in the delivery of terrestrial 3D TV and puts a case forward for the development of appropriate policies—with regard to applicable standards, licensing frameworks and spectrum—to provide an evolution path for the future deployment of terrestrial 3D TV services.

In preparing this white paper, Broadcast Australia has drawn on its extensive experience and expertise in the digital media delivery arena, plus discussions with key industry stakeholders.

Click here to download the whitepaper from: http://www.broadcastaustralia.com.au/assets/files/White%20Papers/BA_3D_TV_WhitePaper.pdf

Korea chooses MasterImage 3D

7.28.2010

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Korea’s largest theatre chain has chosen Burbank-based 3D technology company MasterImage 3D, LLC to converted 58 additional screens to 3D.

MasterImage 3D announced today that CJ CGV is converting all the rest of its 160 3D theaters to its digital 3D cinema systems and that MasterImage 3D has also installed four systems in Korea’s Lotte Cinema in Suncheon.

These installations, combined with existing systems at Primus Cinema, Ya Woo Ri Cinemas and more theatres across Korea, bring MasterImage’s total to 175 of the country’s estimated 250 digital 3D screens, more than 70% of Korea’s total 3D exhibition market share.

CGV Manager Sung woo Kang said, “MasterImage 3D’s system offers an outstanding value compared to other products on the market, and it is simple to install.”

CJ CGV recently opened a 3D screen in L.A. for advancing into the U.S. market.

MasterImage 3D, which also recently entered the New Zealand exhibition market with the sale of its first digital 3D cinema system to the nation’s largest multiplex franchise, Palmerston North-based Downtown Cinemas, says it has nearly doubled its worldwide installation in the past eighteen months and has installed more than 1,800 systems in 40 countries worldwide — approximately 400 in the US, 770 in Europe and 700 in Asia and the rest of the world.

“Exhibitors are recognizing that our ownership-based model and passive-glasses approach offers them a different, and often more attractive business proposition than competitive systems,” said Younghoon Lee, founder, chairman and CEO of MasterImage 3D. “From our US headquarters and offices in Asia and Europe we are aggressively converting theatre markets all over the world.”

CJ CGV was established as a joint venture of CJ Group of Korea, Golden Harvest of Hong Kong and Village Roadshow of Australia, and is now independently managed by CJ Group.

– By Scott Hettrick

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Specification for Naming VFX Image Sequences Released

ETC’s VFX Working Group has published a specification for best practices naming image sequences such as plates and comps. File naming is an essential tool for organizing the multitude of frames that are inputs and outputs from the VFX process. Prior to the publication of this specification, each organization had its own naming scheme, requiring custom processes for each partner, which often resulted in confusion and miscommunication.

The new ETC@USC specification focuses primarily on sequences of individual images. The initial use case was VFX plates, typically delivered as OpenEXR or DPX files. However, the team soon realized that the same naming conventions can apply to virtually any image sequence. Consequently, the specification was written to handle a wide array of assets and use cases.

To ensure all requirements are represented, the working group included over 2 dozen participants representing studios, VFX houses, tool creators, creatives and others.  The ETC@USC also worked closely with MovieLabs to ensure that the specification could be integrated as part of their 2030 Vision.

A key design criteria for this specification is compatibility with existing practices.  Chair of the VFX working group, Horst Sarubin of Universal Pictures, said: “Our studio is committed to being at the forefront of designing best industry practices to modernize and simplify workflows, and we believe this white paper succeeded in building a new foundation for tools to transfer files in the most efficient manner.”

This specification is compatible with other initiatives such as the Visual Effects Society (VES) Transfer Specifications. “We wanted to make it as seamless as possible for everyone to adopt this specification,” said working group co-chair and ETC@USC’s Erik Weaver. “To ensure all perspectives were represented we created a team of industry experts familiar with the handling of these materials and collaborated with a number of industry groups.”

“Collaboration between MovieLabs and important industry groups like the ETC is critical to implementing the 2030 Vision,” said Craig Seidel, SVP of MovieLabs. “This specification is a key step in defining the foundations for better software-defined workflows. We look forward to continued partnership with the ETC on implementing other critical elements of the 2030 Vision.”

The specification is available online for anyone to use.

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