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CE vendors and some broadcasters hope that the London Olympics will revive the market for 3-D from the doldrums into which it subsided late in 2010. Such once-off show cases have traditionally given a boost for new broadcast technology, but while the benefits of HD, boosted by the 2008 Beijing Olympics, were clear and applied to almost every sport, the case for 3-D is less certain while glasses still have to be worn.

Nevertheless the 3-D industry has been buoyed by various surveys indicating that significant numbers of European viewers, especially in the UK as the Olympic host country, have expressed interest in buying 3-D-capable TV sets for the games. For example, a survey of 2000 people conducted by CE giant LG found that 37 percent of UK residents would be interested in purchasing a 3-D TV for the Olympics. For some people, the temptation to purchase a 3-D TV set will be reinforced by the Euro 2012 football tournament being staged in Spain and Portugal earlier that summer. This is the second biggest football tournament after the World Cup, and given European supremacy of the sport with Spain being current world champions, 27 percent of UK residents said that in turn might allure them into purchasing a 3-D TV set.

At the same time, there has been a general slight revival in 3-D interest in Europe. In the UK, the BBC successfully broadcast the recent Wimbledon lawn tennis championships in 3-D as a kind of dress rehearsal for the Olympics.

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The BBC had no plans to launch a dedicated 3-D channel in time for the Olympics but may now be reconsidering that after the success of the Wimbledon broadcast coupled with signs of growing interest. But the dilemma is that this would be at the expense of HD channels, which are currently available to 8.5 million people in the UK. By contrast, the number of 3-D-capable sets by then is unlikely to be 10 percent of that number. Significantly perhaps though the BBC is planning to spend £300,000 upgrading its iPlayer catch up service for the Olympics (see separate story).

In the longer term, success for 3-D will depend both on standardization and success in developing large-screen 3-D TVs that can be viewed easily at high quality from all angles.

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Read the full story here: http://broadcastengineering.com/news/vendors_hope_olympics_revive_3d_07252011/

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In this Thought Leader Interview, we talk with Chris McGurk, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. (CIDM). Chris took the helm at Cinedigm earlier this year and has been deploying new business strategies that promise to enhance the value of the company. In this interview, we talk to Chris about the new business strategies and discuss how he sees Cinedigm evolving. Some of the key takeaways from our interview with Chris include:

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Cinedigm is capitalizing on the ongoing transition to digital cinema technology. The company has signed almost 9,000 screens with 128 exhibitors and installed nearly 7,000 screens to date, and there is widespread recognition within the exhibition community globally thatthe time to go digital is now.

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Cinedigm is providing more alternative content for exhibitions to fill theatres during non-prime times with avid audiences and the creation of THE CINEDIGM NETWORK, which will offer on-going, programmatic content to exhibitors in a “channel” format, including independent films series, an action sports series, kids and family programming, and more. Cinedigm expects to begin announcing exhibition partners in the next 60 days.

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R2: We’ve seen some bearish articles in the media recently on 3D cinema, some calling it a “fad that’s had its run.” What is your view of 3D technology and the role it will play in cinema and entertainment going forward?

CM: There are some areas of entertainment where 3D is absolutely breaking new ground and creating a better entertainment experience for audiences — particularly in the area of sports, music and cultural events. This type of content is obvious and organic for 3D and will continue to thrill audiences by bringing them right into the entertainment experience.

For filmed entertainment, I have always believed – for both filmmakers and audiences – 3D provides an amazing opportunity to bring a new dimension (pun intended) to a storyline thru the visual enhancement, immersion and engagement of viewers. However, 3D is not meant for every movie; in fact, forcing 3D on certain films demeans the value of 3D as it’s seen as a ploy versus a true artistic decision. Story and character are always the most important part of any film; when used appropriately, 3D will always help take a film with good story and character development to an entirely higher level of audience engagement.

Overall, 3D is not going away and as studios and directors show more restraint on when to use or not use 3D, everyone will benefit – from exhibitors to studios to consumers.

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Read the full article here: http://seekingalpha.com/article/281606-thought-leader-interview-with-cinedigm-ceo-chris-mcgurk