Prototype 1080p 3D Chip Possible This Summer, Panasonic CTO Says

A prototype set-top box chip capable of decoding two separate 3D 1080p streams simultaneously may be available this summer, but won’t likely find its way into products for about two years, Panasonic Chief Technology Officer Eisuke Tsuyuzaki told us at a New York media briefing Thursday.

The IC would be key for cable and satellite service operators, including DirecTV, which Thursday launched n3D, pay-per-view and DirecTV Cinema video-on-demand 3D channels in partnership with Panasonic. DirecTV’s 3D programming will initially air for 4-5 hours in primetime, but will broaden in the fall, said Steven Roberts, senior vice president of new media and business development at DirecTV. Among the first 3D programs will be Guitar Center Sessions with Peter Gabriel and Jane’s Addiction and Imax’s S.O.S. Planet, company officials said.

Among the likely candidates for developing a chip capable of decoding two separate 1080p 3D streams would be DirecTV IC supplier Broadcom, as well as set-top chip developer Sigma Designs, industry officials said. Broadcom and Sigma Designs officials weren’t available for comment. As it stands, DirecTV will deliver 3D channels in the frame-compatible side-by-side format that’s supported by most 3D TVs. All movies will be transmitted in 1080i and some sports will be in 720p, Roberts said. DirecTV’s uplink facility in El Segundo, Calif., supports the 3D format along with its HD set-top boxes. DirecTV’s HD receivers had firmware upgraded in June to handle 3D, a DirecTV spokesman said. The HD receivers, along with DVRs, account for about 60 percent of the company’s installed base, the spokesman said. DirecTV will air Major League Baseball’s All-Star game on July 14 in 3D. DirecTV’s 3D programming will be delivered from its DirecTV-12 satellite at 102.8 degrees west. The Boeing-built satellite launched in December and also is designed to add capacity for 19 new HD local channels, DirecTV has said.

"The real issue” in getting to 1080p “is the set-top box because right now it needs to decode that left stream and the right stream and it has only one decoder,” Tsuyuzaki said. Because the IC capable of decoding two 1080p streams is two years from being in a product, it’s “going to be a phased transition” to 1080p 3D, Tsuyuzaki said. In the meantime, 3D content will be transmitted at faster bit rates than standard HD to improve picture quality, Tsuyuzaki said.

DirecTV also won’t offer 2D-to-3D conversion programming for 18-36 months because the technology behind it “isn’t quite ready yet to put content on the channels,” Roberts said. “The technology will evolve and hopefully that eventually will help us scale the amount of programming we can put on those channels,” he said.

Among the major issues for 3D are production costs, which carry a 20-60 percent premium over conventional development costs, Roberts said. DirecTV’s pay-per-view 3D fare also will be priced at $7, $1 more than conventional programming, he said. While ESPN 3D, which DirecTV began carrying with the start of the FIFA World Cup on June 11, has 3D ads, there are no immediate plans for n3D to air them. Proctor & Gamble’s Gillette is among three companies that have aired 3D ads on ESPN 3D. DirecTV will handle some 3D production at the start to help build content, but will increasingly rely on broadcasters and movie studios to provide content, Roberts said.

By fall, DirecTV’s 3D channels will have a “nice range of content,” Roberts said. “You will see some content that will be aired several times and you won’t see a day where every single hour has a separate show because that takes time. It’s just going to evolve from there to where people will find something they want to watch and haven’t seen before."

As it seeks to expand its 3D product offering, Panasonic is open to adding 3D-capable LCDs in addition to plasma. Plasma will be used for 42-inch and up displays, while LCDs will be found in smaller sizes, company officials said. Panasonic sells non-3D 42-inch LCD and plasma TVs. It also completed earlier this week the $717 million purchase of most of Hitachi’s stake in their IPS-Alpha LCD joint venture in Japan. Panasonic’s stake in IPS- Alpha increases to more than 90 percent from 44.8, while Hitachi’s ownership falls to 5 percent from 50.2 percent. About 70 percent of Panasonic’s TVs will be 3D-capable by 2013, company officials have said.

"3D works better in a bigger screen environment,” because of its faster response time and brighter display,” Tsuyuzaki said. “If the demand is there for LCDs in smaller screens, we will make it.”