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3D Television A Reality? ESPN 3D Set For 2010, Sony and Discovery To Develop New Network

Though 3D film dates back to the 1950s, the technology is hotter than ever following the worldwide success of James Cameron’s Avatar. While many are predicting that 3D gaming will eventually become the standard (Ubisoft has already stepped into the trend with its 3D compatible Avatar-based game), the television industry is gearing up for a huge push towards 3D, signaled by two major announcements made today.

Sports fans will be able to enter into the third dimension in 2010, when ESPN will launch ESPN 3D. The new network plans to broadcast no less than 85 live sporting events in 3D. It will go on air on June 11th, with the first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament, showcasing South Africa versus Mexico. Other planned 3D broadcasts include the 2011 BSC National Championship Game, 25 other World Cup matches, and the Summer X Games.

To view games in 3D, fans will need a 3D compatible television (click here for full list of 3D ready HDTVs), 3D glasses, and – in some cases – a special set top box.

Also revealed today was news that three entertainment giants – Discovery, Sony, and IMAX – have partnered to develop the U.S.’s first 24/7 dedicated 3D television network. With Discovery’s cable television might, coupled with Sony and IMAX’s technology in both film, television, and computer graphics, the hope is the new network will help drive 3D as a new standard in home television viewing. Sony itself has announced plans to launch a new 3D compatible line of Bravia televisions as well as its intent to incorporate a new 3D standard into its PlayStation 3 game console and Blu-ray disc format. Currently, there is no official date as to when this new network might begin broadcasting.

Email the author Matt Helgeson, or follow on Twitter, and Game Informer.

Comments
  • I will not warm up to this until they can do away with the need to wear glasses. All 3D glasses are either uncomfortable or annoying to wear.

    Since that means I'm talking holograms I don't think I need to worry about that for some time.

  • lame, I mean, what will be 3D about ESPN, the sportscasters? Its not like they have cameras on the ground.

  • Sounds cool and all but still hurts my eyes after a while. the red/blue glasses i can not wear at all....  

  • looks epic... epic fail or flop, you pick.

  • I went to the newseum (yes the newseum) in Washington DC where they showed a 4D movie that required glasses to watch but were clear, no red and blue needed! perhaps if they used those, a lot more people might warm up to this idea.  

  • Staff

    @skullcap87 A lot of 3D movies in theaters are already using those kind of glasses. I used those when I saw Up in 3D and was very thankful -- the red and blue kind give me a headache!

  • I Foresee! Video games will one day soon be presented in 3D!

  • It's not going to go mainstream for some time, so don't get too stressed about having bought that fancy new HD TV set. Working in television, the logistics behind this are pretty staggering. The only networks that can do this are the ones that have the money to create a "proof-of-concept" without hope of making a ton of money on it.

  • Oh well thank god! Now only if my TV was 3D compatible.  looks like that's going on my next Christmas list

  • All they will have to do is find a way so people woulnt have to ware the stupid glasses or find a way to make them cool looking and conforitable cause after a while they hurt your ears. soon their'll go to 4D and then, "man the bullet feels real... oh *** why am i bleeding?!? OH HAHA nvm, silly 4D

  • All they will have to do is find a way so people woulnt have to ware the stupid glasses or find a way to make them cool looking and conforitable cause after a while they hurt your ears. soon their'll go to 4D and then, "man the bullet feels real... oh *** why am i bleeding?!? OH HAHA nvm, silly 4D"

  • 3D is the new generation that is to come.

  • The thing is, that innovation offers a new way of doing things, let's us see things we've never seen or experience it in a new way. "3D" gaming does none of that, nor do 3D TVs. Will the live action He-Man with Dolf Lundgren be 1 star instead of a half star movie because it's in 3D? is WipEout harder or easier because it's 3D? no.  The image will still have to be confined to the frame of the television so things wont' come OUT at you (unless they're thrown forward, but to the sides... no), they just appear deeper in the frame to begin with, and anything that is a layer between your eye and the screen has the potential to remove details. The point of HD games were details. It's also very very hard to calibrate a universal positive in terms of games on a screen without taking into account angle, distance and a lot of other factors such as color gamut, light intensity and so on.

  • Staff

    i have to admit, my mind is boggling at what a "4D" movie could possibly be.

  • I could see ESPN 3D being a big success. It would be pretty sweet to watch the World Cup in 3D- nobody can deny this. Hey, it might even get mainstream America interested in soccer!

  • G I M M I C K. No thank you, sir - I'll save my money. Virtual boy, anyone?

  • Let's think about that soccer game specifically. How exactly is a third dimension going to improve the experience? If you go to a game it doesn't look much different, if any, but you have the experience of the fans around you and thrill of seeing it first hand. On a television in a limited scope based on the size of your television. Are the players going to seem a little closer to you because they're tall? Are you going to have the fans' head in front of you up close to your 3d glasses? Watching an event that has to be viewed from a distance no matter what is pointless to try and convert into 3d - there's no way to make it that interesting other than forcing fake perspective to enforce that it is "3d."

  • Um.. last thing. The only things that can benefit from adding a third dimensionality to it are mediums which are intended on including the viewer/player/etc in the experience. Film and games are really all I can think of. Actually, as I'm sitting here thinking about it, you could also apply this to the soccer game, but they'd have to invest a lot of money into developing new camera angles to include proximity (i.e. on the field, low to the field) so the ball, players etc will be coming at and going away from the point of view. Otherwise, the traditional overhead, isometric, and other angles won't be affected at all. P.S. soccer is boring =p

  • Somewhere in the world a Sony exec is laughing like Doctor Evil.

  • R U FRIGGIN SERIOUS?!?! Even though Americans love ESPN, some don't have or aren't going to waste the time and money to buy a 3-D TV, wear retarded glasses or get a 'set top box.'

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