German Students Broadcast First Live 3D HDTV Programme

The interest in 3D TV has risen sharply lately with announcements from Hollywood, display vendors and even some broadcasters in the news almost daily. Although the EBU remains cautious about its applicability for regular TV programmes in the short term, EBU Technical does carefully follow the 3D technology developments to understand potential impacts to public broadcasters.

At last week's EBU Production Technology Seminar, a special session was dedicated to 3D technology and the impact it may have on broadcasters. In the foyer several demos of currently available 3D display technology were given.

First German live 3D HDTV programme
Another recent activity in this respect was to support German student Jens Fischer's exam project that was about creating a complete, live, 20-minute magazine programme in 3D HDTV. After five months of preparation, last week the programme went live on air using satellite capacity provided by German EBU Member SWR. The project investigated how current equipment can be used to create 3D TV broadcasts. It included very relevant practical questions, such as how to use 2D material in a 3D broadcast.


Jens Fischer (left) making preparations for the live broadcast


"Dream come true"
For Jens Fischer, his dream to create German's first live HDTV magazine programme in 3D has come true. The next step is to write down the lessons he and his team learned in producing the broadcast. The EBU will share Jens' findings with the wider Membership. For more information on this and other EBU Technical activities in the production domain, please contact EBU's Frans de Jong or program manager Dr Hans Hoffmann.

Source: EBU Technical