July 27, 2011

Discovery 3D coming to VM

Discovery is to make and broadcast its first 3D TV shows outside the US after striking deals with BSkyB and Virgin Media.

The US factual broadcaster has struck a range of deals to produce programming in genres including natural history, engineering, extreme sports and crime.

Under the deal Sky and Virgin have signed content deals to air commissions including 3D Safari, which is to be made by Renegade Pictures, a 10-part series of 60-minute shows filmed at Woburn Abbey, home to a safari park.

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

flaming (3D AGAIN) customers want more hd channels. sort it out virgin media or you lose customers.

campbellg said...

Too right, Glenn, they really need to re-assess their priorities.

36,000 cancellations and no way are they all students, VM haven't had such a loss of punters since 2007.

It's about content, Mr Berkett, not gadgetry, you utter clown!!

Anthony said...

I disagree, it's series commissions like these that actually make me think about upgrading my set to 3D ...

alan said...

yes i agree its about content more HD and 3d,not about bloody stupid boxes called tivo that box is so unreliable its of no use give us the content and a vm+ hd box with a 1tb hard drive then more hd and 3d then you can watch em come back again ,you got it wrong again beter wake up or your gonna loose more

Unknown said...

@Anthony 3D isn't an upgrade, it's a downgrade. Even if you don't mind wearing silly glasses to watch TV, you'll lose 30-50% of picture brightness, and the actual 3D effect is terrible at best.

Go for a demo and see for yourself. 3D at an IMAX is passable, but on a tiny HDTV it looks like a child's pop up story book and the depth of the image looks to be about 30cm. Add to that masses of flicker (if you're using an LCD instead of a plasma) and the whole experience is utterly dreadful.

3D is a technology which is still nowhere near ready. Even the glasses free 3D stuff is incredibly limited and for many causes serious eye strain within minutes. I say check back in 50 years and see if the problems have been solved, as what we have now is little better than what was on offer in the 1950s.

alan said...

Moroboshi
you have not seen the latest lg 3d cinema flicker free,what a load of rubbish you talk everyone i showed it to have been blown away by it,even some of the vm showings are good,but still 3d is not for everyone,so dont diss it because it does not work for you,but its a part of entertainment that needs to be shown

sibod said...

@alan

What unreliable Tivo?

Mine's doing fine thanks.

Anthony said...

@ Moroboshi - I popped into Comet a had demo on one the latest Samsung sets the other day, I have to say I was blown away by the quality of the picture, both HD and 3D ... admittedly they were only showing me 3D content from a demo disc, not a live feed. I did say to the guy I would like to view a 3D channel on VM before purchasing.

I’m my opinion, based on what I saw at the demo, 3D would be perfect for wildlife documentaries, like the Safari series by Renegade Pictures, and amongst other things, live concerts.

3D ‘IS’ content after all.

Which is why I feel it’s an upgrade to my current HD set.

And for the record … I love my TiVo … she’s amazing …

Erich said...

Yes, 3D documentaries is a very worthwhile addition to VM's line-up.

As for quality, it's obvious that the 3D detractors are either being completely dishonest, or they haven't actually seen it in action. The suggestion that the current technology is no better than in the 50s is just pure nonsense.

parmo said...

Well this news is welcomed by me. Good one VM

rmns said...

Really pleased with this news as well, having just gone 3D I find its picture system excellent, nothing like the old 3D years ago.

Unknown said...

@Erich I spend about over an hour in a huge electronics store in Tokyo not long ago where they had demo units of many 3D HDTVs, all showing demo reels from BD. The best by far were the plasmas as they lacked the horrible headache inducing LCD flicker, but even they were still incredibly dark and the 3D looked shallow and unimpressive.

Some people can see flicker more easily than others, just as some people need 60fps in video games instead of 30fps. (many people simply can't tell the difference) For me LCD 3D flicker is instantly noticeable and I hated it from the first moment I saw it.

Fortunately 3D cinema screenings are dropping off and 2D is making more money. The gimmick, and that's truly all it is, is wearing off and people are voting with their wallets. We'll see how well 3D HDTV does, but I wonder how many people are already willing to replace their still new HDTVs with another model just so they can wear sunglasses indoors.

As for my comment on the tech being essentially the same as the 50s, well, you had to wear silly glasses then which messed up the picture quality, and the same is true now. This is a technology nobody asked for and more and more are seeing it for the gimmick it is.

Erich said...

... and the 3D looked shallow and unimpressive.
The "shallow" 3D is actually the best, as far as I'm concerned. It's when they push the 3D perspective too far you get the cardboard cutout look, as they're trying to induce more depth than what you would realistically expect. This is where I feel documentaries and sports tend to do a better job than the average 3D blockbuster, which insists on throwing stuff at the viewer all the time, rather than immersing them in the 3D environment.

As for my comment on the tech being essentially the same as the 50s, well, you had to wear silly glasses then which messed up the picture quality, and the same is true now.
There's a dramatic difference between the quality of red/blue 3D and the current implementation, whether it be shutter or filter based. Suggesting otherwise will only serve to undermine the relevance of your comments.

This is a technology nobody asked for and more and more are seeing it for the gimmick it is.
Heh, when have consumers ever asked for anything? Was there a huge campaign begging for 5.1 sound, HD, etc? Of course not. Progress is introduced by hardware manufacturers and content providers, and the public get to vote with their wallets, and 3D has been the single most profitable and successful addition to cinema in decades.

Anth B said...

Not sure where to put this but: 7 new HD channels on Sky.

Watch - October
Dave - October
Alibi - 2012
Disney - September
TCM - No date
Animal Planet - No date
Cartoon Network - No date

Not sure if any of these will come to VM. The UKTV deal seems exclusive like Good Food/Eden.

http://corporate.sky.com/documents/pdf/latest_results/fy_results_presentation_1011 - Slide 21

Erich said...

Turner Channels going HD!?! (faints)

sibod said...

Cartoon Network?

Seriously?

Dave? WatcH?

Prepare for seriously upscaled SD!

This , folks, is what HD is all about. Now write to VM for you aren't getting your upscaled SD from VM….

Erich said...

The future of 3D continues to look bright, as more and more big-name directors announce their support and love for the format already embraced by the movie-going public. Ridley Scott just announced that:

"I'll never work without 3D again, even for small dialogue scenes. I love the whole process. 3D opens up the universe of even a small dialogue scene so I've been very impressed with that."

http://www.techdigest.tv/2011/07/3d-only_future.html

Unknown said...

@Erich

And yet increasingly we see people seeking out 2D showings even with heavily promoted 3D films. There have been several high profile examples recently where 2D has made money than 3D, even with 3D's higher ticket prices.

I'd honestly be surprised if there were any 3D films still being made in 5 years time.