The DVB is to begin work on Phase 2 of its commercial requirements for 3DTV on July 28. The planned meeting follows publication of specifications for a 3DTV Frame Compatible Plano-Stereoscopic system in line with current 3D broadcasts. Discussions will centre around what is happening around other 3DTV work being undertaken by organisations including SMPTE, Dolby and HDMI.
The DVB is also planning to look into the introduction of additional frame compatible formats designed to improve 3DTV picture quality.
The DVB 3DTV Technical Module has been charged with summaraising the “pros and cons” of the various formats before the Commercial module decides whether the additional formats should be added to the DVB 3DTV specification.
One possible format is the insertion of two 720p L and R pictures within a 1080p composite frame known as the Tile Frame. Although the formats are not compatible with most of the existing H.264 set-top-boxes that do not support 1080p50 or 60, they could be compatible with the most recent 1080p-enabled set-top-boxes and chipsets. Significantly, no new MPEG standards would be required.
A challenge for the DVB will be to balance coding effectiveness against timelines for EBU members that are yet to commit to either a format or a date, though there remains an interest in the 2012 London Olympics.
