Bringing 3DTV to the home is 'not going to be easy, and there will be surprises' said standards expert Peter Symes of SMPTE yesterday.
Speaking at a high-end Digital Television Group (DTG) seminar to which HCC had exclusive access, Symes explained that the technicalities of encoding 3D signals were proving a challenge - for instance, early attempts at compressing signals using MVC (Multi-View Coding) delivered disappointingly inefficient results.
It wasn't the only note of caution sounded at the seminar, at which the DTG announced that it would be working to set standards for 3D delivery to UKTVs and computers.
Chris Johns, Chief Engineer of BSkyB,explained that new techniques had to be developed to create 3D material which delivers 'Emotional involvement, rather than the spear-in-your-face effect'.
Johns demoed Sky's 3D sports footage, which concentrates on creating a wide immersive sense of perspective, rather than gimmicky effects. Partly this is due to the limitations of the 3D camera rigs, partly because viewers might find the 3D effect tiring if it isn't strictly controlled.






