NAB Show 2013: Dolby, Philips And CPG Partner On Autostereoscopic 3D TV

My good friend David Cohen over at Variety broke this story involving the new partnership of Dolby Laboratories, Royal Philips Electronics and the Cameron Pace Group for the support of autostereoscopic (glasses-free) 3D TV. Very interesting development!!

"3D is not really going to be successful as a mainstream viewing medium for consumers until it’s as easy as sitting down and watching the content," said Giles Baker, SVP, Broadcast Business Group of Dolby. "In order to deliver that best experience, you really need to embed a deep understanding of how the content was created into the 3D content."

Says Vince Pace of the Cameron Pace Group:  "The model for 3D success is from companies that know what they’re doing, know the combination of quality and technology. So Dolby was perfect fit for CPG."

"People will see entertainment as they experience everyday life and CPG will take the business steps to make that happen. That was done in the theatrical world, when Jim (Cameron) committed to making a film in 3D when digital cameras, digital cinemas, were all in their infancy. If you look at the broadcast model, to describe it as in its infancy is correct. But we see that as an opportunity for us. That’s the kind of market we like to play in."

The article paraphrases what Steve Schklair of 3ality Technica told Variety: '3D live broadcasting had stalled in part because of the lack of a strong business model in the U.S.'.

I will update this story as it unfolds, but for now it's an exciting next step toward glasses free 3D and the future of the small screen.

Philips Demoes 56 inch 21:9 3DTV

Michael here. Philips is prepared to enter the brawl of consumer electronics companies who have 3D in their sights. They are showing off an ultra-widescreen, 21:9 3D television hooked up to a 3d-capable blu-ray player.

However, Philips has not announced any definite plans as to when this TV might go on sale, saying that the technology "is not quite there."

The tech is definitely there, as I and many others have seen via Panasonic's super-impressive 103 inch 3D Plasma. Perhaps what they meant was that a standard has not yet been reached. However, I am confident that the Blu-ray Disk Association, Consumer Electronics Association, SMPTE, the 3D-at-Home Consortium, and other bodies will get everything straightened out soon.

There is simply too much money at stake for them to prolong the process of deciding on standards for 3DTV.

Philips Backs Out Of "No Glasses Based 3D TVs" - Cites Market Conditions

Jim here. According to Chris Chinnock of Display Daily (Insight Media), Philips CEO Jos Swillens has announced internally that they will cease the operations of their 3D Solutions.

Swillens wrote: "Because of current market developments, the point in time where mass adoption of no-glasses based 3D TV will occur has shifted significantly. Therefore, Philips has decided to stop the 3D Solutions venture. Philips has been marketing its leading no-glasses based 3D technologies through a pro-active approach for a long time, because it believes that over time, no-glasses based 3D TVs will bring the ultimate 3D experience to the home. Unfortunately, the current market developments no longer justify such a pro-active approach. As a consequence of this, Philips has decided to scale down its investments in this area. In practice, this means that the 3D Solutions venture will be discontinued."

From Display Daily: "In a follow up discussion with Bjorn Teuwsen, Manager Marketing & Communications, he explained that the recession and the impact on the LCD industry had changed the math in their risk-reward calculation. In essence, Philips needed the LCD industry to make investments in new switchable 2D/3D technology and to aggressively cost reduce Quad HD panels. Philips believed both were needed to establish cost effective autostereoscopic 3D TVs. But the LCD makers are delaying these investments and the ripple effect impacted Philips by stretching out the time when these TVs would become available. The consequence was that Philips would need more time and investment in 3D. While it also has a viable B2B 3D display business, it was judged that the revenue from this component, plus the additional investment and longer time scale to a consumer AS-3D TV, ultimately did outweigh the potential long-term income from 3D TVs. The business equation became too risky, which is why the operation was shut down."

"Philips was clearly the market leader and evangelist for autostereoscopic (no-glasses) 3D displays. It was selling its 42" lenticular-based 3D display (42-3D6W02) along with its 3×3 array of these displays called the WOWvx, and it has a number of sites using its Blue Box and Red Box processors. Prototypes of 50-inch and 8-inch no-glasses 3D displays were close to introduction too. At last year's 3D BizEx event, it showcased the future of AS-3D display by demonstrating a 56-inch AS-3D display with a native resolution of 4096×2160, creating one of the best no-glasses 3D images to date."

What does this mean for the future of 3D with Philips home electronics? Well this particular 3D Solutions team was NOT part of the Philips Consumer Lifestyle group (responsible for TVs), and Teuwsen stated that there is a strong push for 3DTV right now. It is just that autostereoscopic TVs (ASTVs - no glasses) will be further delayed.

And to underscore that, this means Philips is out of the No-3D Glasses TV Race. I am not going to say this doesn't hurt - it does. But ASTVs will still have a future - just a little more drawn out now. The 3DTVs that depend on 3D glasses are still very much alive and growing rapidly.

Quick Post: Philips Unveils 3DTV Without Glasses

"Even before we get used to high-definition TV, researchers are planning to place "3D" TV in our homes — but without the funny glasses.

Philips Electronics NV gave a peek into its research pipeline Tuesday, demonstrating a prototype that was still fuzzy around the edges. Operating like a holographic greeting card, it combines slightly different angles of the same image to create video that appears to have different depths as your eyes scan it.

The result is uneven, at some moments blurry, and at others merely two dimensional. But sometimes the apparent depth or protrusion can be startling.

"We say the market progression is black and white, to color, to high definition, to 3D," said Bjorn Teuwsen, demonstrating the product. "We estimate in a few years these will be in homes."

Specialized models have been sold to corporations — mostly movie theaters and casinos — where they are usually used for advertising signs, since 2006. But Philips said the product is not yet ready for consumer rollout.

Samsung is demonstrating its own no-glasses 3D television concept model this week in Las Vegas."

Again, 3D seems to be firing on ALL cylinders as multiple media channels are converging to bring us the 3D immersion facter - and with a lot of innovation! Of course 3D TVs are available now for use with 3D glasses - the future holds the promise of glass-less 3D for the home and the theater.

Source: AP