3D@HOME CONSORTIUM AND MPEG IF PUBLISH GLOSSARY ON 3D VIDEO QUALITY

3D@home

Providing a Common Language for Video Experts Improves Development Cycle Time

San Jose and Milpitas, Calif., Sept. 3, 2010

– The 3D@Home Consortium and the MPEG Industry Forum (MPEG IF) today announced the release of a new glossary of terms for providing a common language for discussing, identifying and improving the subjective quality of stereoscopic (i.e. 3D) video. Over 235 terms are defined within this comprehensive glossary, targeted at 3D videographers and their crews, post production, and test facilities. It is designed to facilitate their communication on the many distinctive aspects of digital production, testing, encoding and compressing, when considering three dimensions rather than just two.

The terms were identified and defined in a joint effort by a Project Team of the 3D@Home’s Consortium’s Content Committee (ST1) and MPEG IF’s 3D Working Group, both lead by Sean McCarthy, Ph.D., from Motorola Mobility. Dr. McCarthy notes, “As a vision scientist, I am pleased to have, in one place, a reference guide to this new terminology. When all individuals involved in a project are referencing a similar vocabulary, then communication can be clear and unambiguous. That shortens creation, evaluation and development cycles and avoids costly errors.”

MPEG Industry

Rick Dean, chair of the 3D@Home Consortium and senior vice president at THX, commented, “3D@Home Consortium is pleased to add this document to its library of vital resources for its members and the industry at large. We continue to strive to provide tools that can be utilized extensively by experts and novices alike as 3D video creation and analysis techniques develop further. The glossary will also serve as a natural tool for reference as training materials, best practices documents, presentations, and other communication vehicles are developed.”

The glossary is considered a ‘living’ document and subsequent revisions and updates are anticipated. Because, when working with video creation many of the terms are often more easily demonstrated visually than in written form, plans are in place to expand the written definitions with multimedia examples available online.

The glossary, available today in PDF format, can be found at www.3DatHome.org, or at www.mpegif.org/ or by requests via email to info @ 3DatHome-dot-org. An online, interactive and searchable glossary will be forthcoming in several months.

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About 3D@Home Consortium
Comprised of more than 40 companies representing the entire 3D development channel from North America, Asia and Europe, the consortium is working to accelerate the adoption of quality 3D technology in the home by enabling an entire « system » of products that will broadcast, play, and display 3D content.

More information is available at www.3DatHome.org.

About MPEGIF
The MPEG Industry Forum is an independent and platform neutral not-for-profit organization representing more than 35 international companies and organizations from diverse industries with the goal to facilitate and further the widespread adoption and deployment of MPEG and related standards in next generation digital media services. It provides a forum to exchange information and views on technological, economic and regulatory issues that are relevant to these services. It also provides a powerful industry voice advocating the adoption of standards and consolidating the direction of the industry in the time of transition from analogue to digital television and media services.

Nicola Wissler
Association Specialist
MPEG Industry Forum
48377 Fremont Blvd., Suite 117
Fremont, CA 94538
Phone: 510-492-4028
Fax: 510-492-4001
Email: nicola.wissler@mpegif.org
www.mpegif.org

Ten Reasons Why 3D TV May Fail

Will we all watch 3D TV in the future, or will it remain a niche product meant for science fiction movies, video games, or special sporting events?
As we’ve seen with the breakout success of the movie Avatar, there is definitely consumer willingness to enjoy 3D at the movies. But, it is still an open question whether consumers will buy a 3D experience for the home. Here are ten reasons why in-home 3D TV may never achieve mass market appeal.

Glasses
Need I say more. Who wants to buy them, keep track of them, or even wear them? Are you eager to wear geeky 3D glasses and sit silently in front of a TV in a darkened room every night?

TV Watching is Social
Home TV watching is in many ways a social experience. You watch with your family or friends with the lights on. You may talk about the show or something else. Multitaskers may even be on the Internet, chatting, tweeting or texting from their phone. 3D viewing abruptly alters the social nature of TV watching.

Compatibility
Think the brand new flat panel TV you bought recently will show 3D? Think again. You will need to upgrade just about everything including the cables.

Lack of content
Even if you are fortunate enough to buy a 3D TV when they first come out, along with a 3D Blu-ray player, you won’t have much to watch. Even if you could watch more, what do you really have to watch in 3D?

Confusion
3D adds a new layer of complexity to the already complicated TV, satellite/cable, dvd player hook-up process. New technical 3D jargon will further confuse consumers. There are currently different ways to capture and displa y 3D, which can require different types of glasses and/or equipment. Confused yet? So am I.

Health risks
3D viewing can induce headaches, disorientation, nausea, or eye-strain for some people. 3D tricks the brain and puts your eyes through a serious workout. Nobody knows yet, since there have been no major studies what, if any, long-term effects extensive 3D watching may cause.

Unwatchable 3D Footage
3D video is unwatchable without special glasses. If you were told right now your TV would only work if you wore special glasses, how many of those TVs do you think would sell? Admittedly that is an untrue example, but it’s still the same question consumers will answer with their purse strings.

Just Good-enough Syndrome
This is not a disease, but many peopl e are quite happy with their new flat panel TV purchase of recent years. At the same time everything is not yet broadcast in full HD and the majority are still happy with regular DVD quality. Even the blu-ray market has yet to take off. Convincing consumers to adopt a new format may be a tough sell.

Discs are dying
No funerals please. With improved streaming capabilities and greater digital home storage, inevitably discs (cd, dvd and blu-ray) will be replaced with on-demand streaming. It may take another decade, but how we consume media will likely not include discs. This isn’t necessarily bad for 3D, but it takes 2-4 times more storage and greater download speeds to stream 3D. Bandwidth limitations are likely to be an issue.

History Lessons
Bringing sweeping change to home TV watching takes time, a very long time. It took HDTV about 20 years to achieve market dominance with the help of a government mandate. For better or worse, I don’t expect government involvement this time. The electronics and entertainment industries will have their work cut out for them.