Sony, FIFA Tout Ambitious Live 3D Plans For World Cup

LONDON -- Sony and FIFA have an ambitious plan to bring 3D broadcasts of World Cup soccer to homes and public venues and 3D clips to retail stores, they said at a news conference here Thursday. Sony also said it will capture footage of key matches on a Blu-ray 3D disc.

In all, 25 games will be broadcast in 3D from five of 10 stadiums beginning June 11, when host South Africa faces Mexico in the opening match. Sony will supply the equipment to production company Host Broadcast Services for coverage of the matches, Sony said. Switzerland’s Aruna Media will handle screening of eight matches in 50 as yet unnamed cinemas and entertainment venues in 26 countries worldwide. David Bush, marketing director at Sony Professional Europe, gave a clear hint those will include the Apollo cinema in London, recently equipped with Sony’s 4K 3D projectors. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will offer the official 3D FIFA World Cup recording on Blu-ray disc this year. Sony also will produce and show 25 exclusive promotional trailers for the 3D disc in 4,000 retail stores worldwide, including 200 Sony flagship stores.

Because the positions for 2D cameras have long since been allocated, 3D crews must take what space remains at the five stadiums selected for 3D broadcasts -- two in Johannesburg and one each in Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth. Sony will provide two 3D outside-broadcast trucks, like the one used by U.K. satellite broadcaster Sky on April 3 for its 3D coverage of the Manchester United versus Chelsea soccer game (CED April 2 p3). One truck will stay in Johannesburg and the other will travel among the other game sites.

Each match will be covered by seven pairs of Sony’s HDC-1500 professional cameras for 3D, as well as 32 completely separate 2D cameras, and each truck will be equipped with Sony’s new MPE-200 signal processor for 3D content. That mixer was developed in the U.K. by Sony’s professional division, and makes its debut at the NAB Show in Las Vegas (April 10-15), Bush told us. The MPE-200 uses the same Cell Processor engine as Sony’s PS3, and works in realtime with auto-alignment and optimization “so there’s no eye strain,” he said.

Peter Angell, HBS director of production, told us more about the camera setup. “There will be no integration of 2D and 3D camera setups. There isn’t the space. And the shooting style is very different, with much faster cutting for 2D and more comprehensive views for 3D,” he said. “But there will be some conversion of 2D to 3D when the 3D setup is missing something important. We have been testing converters from Sony and JVC. It can work very well, especially with a Steadicam. Unfortunately there is no space for 3D Steadicams, only for 2D units."

"We have learned a lot from Sky and ESPN,” Angell said. “Lower angles make more sense. Of the seven cameras, three will be above the pitch [playing field], but lower than for 2D -- around 10 or 12 meters high, which is about half the 2D camera height,” he said. “The other four will be at pitch level, for immediacy and intimacy. All seven 3D camera rigs will be on the same side of the pitch. Only 2D will give reverse angle shots,” Angell said. “There will be regular variable-speed slow motion for 3D, but not super slo-mo with faster capture speeds."

"The MPE-200 provides a lot of information, for instance on which is the furthest forward object. So, we can always put graphics in front of everything on-screen,” Angell said. “It can also be used to adjust depth-of-field for comfortable viewing. If things appear too far away or too close, we can change the conversion, either mechanically on the camera or electronically."

As for what outlets will carry the live 3D feeds, FIFA’s Ericson said, “Discussions with major broadcasters are ongoing. The first confirmed partners for the 3D live broadcast are ESPN in the U.S. and Sogecable in Spain. We expect further announcements to be made shortly.” In the U.K., terrestrial broadcasters BBC and ITV will be sharing the games, but in 2D only. Although Sky is equipped to broadcast in 3D, the subscription-based satellite broadcaster doesn’t have World Cup rights, Ericson said.

During the London presentation, attendees were given Dolby 3D glasses for two big-screen demonstration sequences. Some of the footage, from trials shot at last year’s FIFA Confederations Cup competition in South Africa, was surprisingly poor. The 3D effect often was flat or looked like superimposed planes of action. There also was noticeable blur and crosstalk-ghosting, especially on panned shots of soccer. The colorful FIFA South Africa graphics-logo sequences collapsed into what looked like 2D. Sony and HBS later confirmed that the FIFA South Africa graphics was in fact in 2D.

In a side room, Sony was demonstrating 3D soccer and nature clips using two 3D Bravia sets with active shutter glasses. The source was a PS3, upgraded with firmware to deliver 3D. A Sony spokesman told us this upgrade is so far available only for the company’s own demos and won’t be available for consumers to download and install until June, when Sony launches 3D Bravia TVs and “3D content is available."

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Sony’s consumer and professional 3D technologies are being used at the Masters golf championship, which began Thursday and runs through Sunday in Augusta, Ga., Sony said. Sony was a sponsor of the first Masters to be captured in 3D, and outfitted hospitality suites in Augusta with its 3D Bravia LCD TVs. Some Sony Style stores were hosting private events on April 8, with a two-hour live broadcast from two holes being broadcast in 3D. The 3D content from the Masters also will be delivered to the new “Sony 3D Experience” consumer-research center at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. Sony HD cameras in stereo pairs were used to capture the 3D action from the tournament.