3D@HOME CONSORTIUM AND INTERNATIONAL 3D SOCIETY MERGE TO FORM WORLD’ S LARGEST 3D ORGANIZATION
The International 3D Society (I3DS) and the 3D@Home Consortium today announced plans to merge operations and activities. With members in 20 countries and chapters in China, Japan, Korea, Europe, the UK and North America, the new organization will be known as the International 3D Society & 3D@Home. The Merger was ratified by both organizations’ leadership and is effective immediately.
"This newly formed organization will serve to spearhead the growth and expansion of the 3D entertainment industry across the entire ecosystem – from content conception and development, to consumer education and adoption," said Tom Cosgrove, Co-Chair of I3DS & 3D@Home and President and CEO of 3net. "Across all platforms where 3D is expanding, everywhere consumers are consuming 3D content, and in any way the 3D format is being utilized, our organization is there to support our members and advance the growth of this prolific medium."
Read the full story here: http://www.international3dsociety.com
American Optometric Association (AOA) Debuts TrueVision® 3D Surgical Technology to Over 100 Optometrists at Annual Meeting
[Philip Lelyveld Comment: this is not new, but a good reminder of what TrueVision offers.]
The TrueVision 3D Surgical Visualization System is a real-time, stereoscopic, 3D high-definition visualization system that attaches to microscopes to display the surgical field of view on 3D flat panel displays in the operating room. The advanced technology is used for microsurgery and to stream live video of the surgical field, making it an unparalleled teaching tool.
Read the full press release here: http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2012/08/16/american-optometric-association-aoa-debuts-truevision®-3d-surgical-technology-over-100-op
Make any TV 3D? This converter will do it
3D pioneer Gene Dolgoff (who invented the first LCD projector, helped develop HDTV, and is currently revolutionizing lenticular imaging technologies at 3-D Vision Inc.) has created a prototype box that he claims will convert any TV into a 3D set.
Read the full story here: http://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/3d-pioneer-gene-dolgoff-shows-off-his-in-development-instant-3d-converter/
Can James Cameron Save The Struggling 3D TV Business With Fox Avatar 3D Blu-ray Release?
According to the Consumer Electronics Association, sales of 3D-enabled displays are growing. Unit sales in 2012 are expected to reach 5.6 million, up 104 percent year-over-year. Shipment revenues will jump 75 percent, to more than $7 billion.
“Every PlayStation 3 out there is 3D capable,” said Jack Tretton, president of Sony Computer Entertainment. “We’ve got a lot of great games available in 3D, but we’re just one part of the ecosystem. I certainly think we need a greater adoption of 3D televisions, because obviously without the 3D monitor or the 3D TV, you’re going to be limited in your opportunity to bring 3D content to consumers.”
See the full story here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/johngaudiosi/2012/08/14/can-james-cameron-save-the-struggling-3d-tv-business-with-fox-avatar-3d-blu-ray-release/
3D movies overwhelming the market in China
Movie theater managers say that most of the animation movies on the screen during the summer vacation are 3-D films. Tickets sell out very quickly for 3-D movies. ... "More than 60 percent of the movies are 3-D, only a few are 2-D. They bring in a lot of money for us."
See the full story here: http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90782/7910948.html
‘Life of Pi’ to open NYFF: Ang Lee’s 3D film launches 50th festival
"Life of Pi," the upcoming 3D outing from helmer Ang Lee, will open the 2012 New York Film Festival prior to its 20th Century Fox release in November. It'll mark the first return to NYFF for Lee since his pic "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" closed the Gotham event in 2000. His movie "The Ice Storm" opened the fest in 1997. A 3D film has never before been presented as part of the NYFF main slate, a tightly curated lineup that usually encompasses between 25 and 30 films. Last year Martin Scorsese's "Hugo" was presented in 3D as a "surprise screening" that wasn't part of the festival's central lineup.
See the full story here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/sns-201208131535reedbusivarietynvr1118057757-20120813,0,1936792.story
New Technology Presents Any 3D Movie Without Glasses
[Philip Lelyveld comment: Fraunhofer advances autostereo processing from Blu-ray files.]
... Researchers at Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich-Hertz Institute, HHI in Berlin recently developed a technology that converts a Blu-ray’s existing 3D content in a manner that enables them to be shown on autostereoscopic displays. “We take the existing two images and generate a depth map – that is to say, a map that assigns a specific distance from the camera to each object,” says Christian Riechert, research fellow at HHI. “From there we compute any of several intermediate views by applying depth image-based rendering techniques. And here’s the really neat thing: the process operates on a fully automated basis, and in real time.” Previous systems were only capable of generating such depth maps at a dramatically slower pace; sometimes they even required manual adaption. Real-time conversion, by contrast, is like simultaneous interpretation: the viewer inserts a 3D Blu-ray disc, gets comfortable in front of the TV screen and enjoys the movie – without the glasses. Meanwhile, a hardware component estimates the depth map in the background and generates the requisite views. The viewer is aware of nothing: he or she can fast forward or rewind the movie, start it, stop it – and all with the same outstanding quality. The flickering that could appear on the edges of objects – something that happens due to imprecise estimations – is imperceptible here. ...
See the full story here: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2012/08/new-technology-presents-any-3d-movie-without-glasses
NASA scientists drive Mars rover Curiosity as if playing a 3D game
Nvidia’s Ken Brown said today on the graphics chip maker’s blog that the Jet Propulsion Laboratory had to use 3D vision technology (stereoscopic 3D glasses) to figure out how to control the expensive Curiosity explorer from 352 million miles away. It’s a cool dual use of technology for gaming and science. Besides, the huge volume of game PCs and graphics cards sold on the commercial market helps pay for high-end research and development into advanced graphics, which is just what folks such as the JPL researchers need.
Since it takes at least 14 minutes to get a signal to Mars, the Curiosity can’t be operated the same way you drive in Mario Kart 7. By the time a driver sees an obstacle on the rocky landscape, it may be too late to stop.
So the team at JPL in Pasadena, Calif., created a simulated environment, like a video game, to test each action before telling the rover to move. ...
Read the full story here: http://venturebeat.com/2012/08/13/nasas-scientists-drive-mars-rover-curiosity-as-if-playing-a-3d-game/
“Titanic 3D” first Hollywood film in decades to play in Myanmar
The re-release of James Cameron's romantic drama will hit Myanmar (also known as Burma) through an arrangement with the Mingalar Company. In a statement, Twentieth Century Fox alluded to the political reforms taking place throughout the country as part of the reason for its decision to open the film there.
"In recent years, we have entered markets such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Mongolia and Papua New Guinea," Twentieth Century Fox International co-presidents Tomas Jegeus and Paul Hanneman said in a joint statement. "We have noted with great interest the reforms taking place in Burma under Thein Sein and look forward to visiting our newest territory when we travel Asia later this year."
See the full story here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/sns-rt-us-titanic3d-myanmarbre87c132-20120813,0,313714.story
The State of 3DTV
In June, the DirecTV cut back its n3D channel, the first 3D channel intended for 24/7 broadcasting, to a part-time schedule. This is usually attributed to a lack of sufficient 3D content that can attract a home audience large enough to support its distribution. ...
“At this time, ESPN 3D is not measured by Nielsen,” said Bryan Burns, ESPN vice president, strategic business planning. “ESPN 3D is available to more than 60 million homes throughout the country. We’re still in the early stages of 3DTV. We knowingly hit the on-ramp early and are still in the education phase.” ...
But there is great momentum toward developing “service compatible” standards that could provide two channels of full resolution within that same bandwidth. Last month, Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB), an industry-led consortium of over 230 broadcasters, manufacturers and regulatory bodies, approved Phase 2a of the DVB-3DTV specification used by many U.S. satellite and cable operators. ...
Read the full story here: http://www.tvtechnology.com/feature-box/0124/the-state-of-dtv/214879