Imagenio 3D

Imagen miniatura: 

Over the past few years, Telefónica I+D has played a pivotal role in developing Digital TV services in Spain. First of all with the development of the Telefonica platform to provide interactive services over Digital TV by satellite and second of all with the development of the first ADSL Television Platform in Spain, Imagenio.

Telefónica I+D is still working into this field, conducting research in the technologies that make it possible to offer the next generation of TV services: 3D TV.

What is Imagenio 3D?

Imagenio 3D evolved from Telefonica's ADSL TV service and allows users to view contents in three dimensions right in their homes.

With this objective in mind, Telefonica I+D has several different innovative projects on 3D video technologies underway, paying special attention to adapting the different elements on the value chain of the TV services, ranging from production, coding, and broadcasting of the contents to playback.

Background

Until now, very little 3D video technology was available. The audio and video coding standards were not prepared for new video formats and there was very little terminal equipment to present contents and the little there was, was extremely costly.

However, over the last few years, technological advances have made 3D TV services more and more of a reality. An increasing number of television manufacturers have presented autostereoscopic 3D TV prototypes, allowing viewers to enjoy the 3D effect without needing polarized glasses.

What's more, the main production companies in the cinema industry are firmly committed to the production of 3D contents.

All of this, alongside the imminent standardization of 3D video broadcasting systems, makes it possible to predict the arrival of 3D services in the home over the upcoming few years.

Beowulf, the first 3D film shown in conventional digital cinemas, premiered in Spain in October 2007.

Prototype of the 3D TV Platform

Telefónica I+D developed a prototype of the 3D video-on-demand platform for Telefónica's ADSL Television Platform, based on the results of the research activities carried out in relation to 3D video.

The prototype has 2 fundamental characteristics:

• It is compatible with Imagenio's characteristics and specifications as regards network infrastructures, coding schemes, video providers, etc.
• It has an integrated high-quality autostereoscopic display terminal. This device allows the user to see the video contents in 3D without the need to use glasses or any other device. This characteristic is essential for home-directed services, where the user's comfort while viewing contents is paramount.

Results

Video-on-demand (VoD) technology allows users to access multimedia contents according to their own wants or needs. That is to say, users can choose the programme they wish to watch at any time without having to worry about the programme schedule. The users can also stop and restart the programme at will.

The 3D video-on-demand prototype developed gives users the same video control functions as currently available systems do, using standard protocols but it also offers 3D stereoscopic display functions for contents.