TV 2 Norway to broadcast live 3-D football to web

Media asset management vendor Vizrt has announced that TV 2 Norway, in partnership with SterGen High-Tech, will broadcast live football to TV 2's IPTV and web customers. On Oct. 15, using SterGen's high-quality 3-D conversion technology, TV 2 will broadcast the Barclays Premier League match between Manchester United and Liverpool, bringing a major sports event in 3-D to Norwegian viewers over IPTV infrastructure and the web for the first time.

TV 2 will also be the first to produce and broadcast a native stereoscopic 3-D TV production in Norway, when Norway’s national football team will play against Cyprus in the UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifier on Oct. 11.

SterGen enables 3-D for a range of sport events, using its own technology for real-time creation of computed stereoscopic 3-D from individual 2D cameras or program feeds. It specializes in converting 2D material to 3-D, enabling TV 2 to route its 2D signals via SterGen’s live 2D to 3-D decoder, and apply 3-D effects to the PC and IPTV platforms. Another Vizrt partner, Vimond Media Solutions, recently announced support for 3-D streaming, giving broadcasters the ability to augment their 2D services with 3-D content viewable on connected Blu-ray consoles, connected TVs, desktop computers, tablets, and other mobile devices. Viewers will be able to watch the game either via a 3-D IP television connected to the web, or using a 3-D PC screen using the screen manufacturer’s glasses.