3d

[itvt] has just published the latest edition of Rick Howe's regular column, "The iTV Doctor Is In!" This week, various interactive TV industry notables--including Mike Bloxham of Ball State University's Center for Media Design, Allison Dollar of the iTV Alliance, Jaspal Bhasin of itaas, Glen Friedman of Ideas & Solutions, and Gary Arlen of Arlen Communications--weigh in on the buzz around 3D TV at the recent Consumer Electronics Show.

A number of pieces of connected TV news came across [itvt]'s desk, Tuesday. Here is a brief--and by no means exhaustive--round-up (note: also see "Vudu Unveils Vudu Apps OTT Service," "ActiveVideo Networks in Deal to Provide Blockbuster with Cloud-Based User Interface," and "Showtime Networks, Betfair Launch Interactive TV Widgets"):

As was widely anticipated, 3D TV has emerged as one of the major themes of this year's Consumer Electronics Show--and a number of pieces of 3D TV news came across [itvt]'s desk, Tuesday. Here is a brief round-up:

Sonic Solutions, the digital media company that in 2008 acquired the pioneering broadband VOD service/platform, CinemaNow (it subsequently added "Roxio" to the service's name in order to make its branding consistent with its other products), announced Monday that it is launching version 2.0 of Roxio CinemaNow at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week. According to the company, the new version, which it will be demo'ing by invitation in the Renaissance Hotel's Chairman Room, offers new HD and 3D capabilities and various interactive capabilities.

Imaging and video technology specialist, HDlogix (note: the company's main product lines are ImageIQ, a suite of image and video optimization and enhancement technologies; Clique, a set of mobile and desktop video communications client software applications; and Hue, a range of HD Web cameras), contacted [itvt] Monday to let us know that it powered what it says was the first live 3D broadcast ever to be shown on giant screens at a major sporting event--during last Sunday's football game at Cowboys Stadium between the Dallas Cowboys and the San Diego Chargers, which was attended by 80,000 fans who were given

[itvt] has just published an interview with Professor Tom DeFanti, the principal scientist behind the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology's (Calit2) new 3D immersive visualization system, NexCAVE. Also participating in the interview is Dave Walton of JVC, the company whose 3D HD LCD monitors form a crucial component of NexCAVE.

US cable-industry research, development and standardization body, CableLabs, announced Monday that it has teamed with the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) and a number of consumer electronics manufacturers to organize a showcase of the latest 3D theater and TV displays as part of next week's SCTE Cable-Tec Expo in Denver (October 28-30). The showcase--which will take place in a 3,400-square-foot CableLabs 3D TV Pavilion, co-sponsored by the SCTE--is slated to include a D-Cinema 3D demonstration in a main theater provided by Sony and a home theater experience provided by Panasonic, as well as displays of consumer 3D TV sets from Hyundai IT, LG Electronics and Sony.

SPRXmobile announced last week that it has added 3D capabilities to its Layar augmented reality browser (note: for background on the Layar platform--which leverages smartphones' integrated GPS and compass capabilities to display layers of interactive digital information on top of real-time video on those phones' camera screens, thus effectively transforming reality into a giant, clickable interactive video--see the articles published on itvt.com, June 17th, July 9th and August 18th, and the interview with SPRXmobile co-founder, Maarten Lens-Fitzgerald, published July 16th).

Kudelski-owned content protection specialist, Nagravision, has teamed with 3D technology specialist, 3ality Digital, to develop a new set-top box system, called the Nagra Media Guide for 3D, that will provide viewers with a 3D graphical user interface (GUI) through which to browse and watch 3D programming from their cable or satellite TV provider, according to a report in Wednesday's Wall Street Journal. A prototype of the system will be demo'd at the 3D Entertainment Summit in Los Angeles this week. According to the Journal, Nagravision and 3ality Digital are hoping that products like the new 3D media guide will encourage producers to create more 3D programming.

Dutch chip company, NXP Semiconductors, said last week that it has integrated NDS's MediaHighway set-top box software onto its CX2450x system-on-a-chip (SoC) solution for HD set-top boxes. The company says that the integration will reduce time-to-market and integration costs for set-top box operators and OEM's to bring new, interactive TV-enabled pay-TV services to end-users.

Total Immersion, an augmented reality company that has apparently been around since 1999, contacted [itvt] Tuesday to let us know that it has signed an exclusive distribution partnership agreement with int13, a French software firm that specializes in smartphone applications. The deal calls for the companies to integrate their respective technologies to market embedded AR applications through a new, mobile version of Total Immersion's D'Fusion platform.

Because of the large volume of news generated by the ongoing IBC show in Amsterdam, and because the [itvt] editorial team is currently traveling in the UK, we are covering a number of this issue's news stories in round-up/summary form. We anticipate some additional interruption of our regular news publishing schedule in the coming days, so we apologize in advance for any inconvenience to our readers. Here is the round-up:

At the IBC show in Amsterdam, UK-based set-top box manufacturer, Pace, is showcasing a hybrid set-top box with an integrated 3D user interface. According to the company, the box's 3D UI capabilities will enable operators to roll out increased levels of interactivity through a range of graphic enhancements and effects, and will provide end-users with a "content-rich" experience that will enable them to access a mix of cross-platform content more easily.

MTV has teamed with interactive video company, Big Stage Entertainment, on an interactive viral video promotion for the show, "Jackass." Dubbed "Be a Jackass" and located on the show's Web site (jackassworld.com/pages/big-stage), the free promotion invites viewers to digitally superimpose their faces on Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and other personalities from the show as they perform their signature outrageous stunts.

At the SIGGRAPH event in New Orleans this week, a team of researchers from the University of Tokyo is demo'ing a technology, dubbed the Airborne Ultrasound Tactile Display, that uses ultrasound technology to enable touchable holograms. "Although we can 'see' holographic images as if they are really floating in front of us, we cannot 'touch' them, because they are nothing but light," the team explains on SIGGRAPH's Web site. "This project adds tactile feedback to the hovering image in 3D free space. Tactile sensation requires contact with objects, but including a stimulator in the work space dilutes the appearance of holographic images.