DirecTV Sees 3D as Way to Differentiate Technology Leadership

DirecTV’s launch of ESPN 3D Friday, and later additions of other 3D programming this month, will help differentiate the company from other TV providers as an early adopter of the technology, said Steven Roberts, senior vice president of new media and business development, who’s overseeing the 3D effort for DirecTV. Extensive work with TV manufacturers will allow the company to remain at the forefront of TV technology, as it did with HD, he said. Dish will also begin to offer 3D later this year, but opted not to sign up now for ESPN 3D, said a Dish executive.

DirecTV worked with TV makers, including Panasonic, Sony, LG and Mitsubishi, to make sure the 3D TVs would fully complement the programming, said Roberts. That’s because “lots of the heavy lifting” is done by the TV sets rather than the set-top boxes, which can be updated remotely to accommodate the 3D signal, he said. The company will broadcast its 3D content, beginning with the opening game of the World Cup between Mexico and South Africa, in side-by-side format, said Roberts. DirecTV will begin offering three more 3D channels this month, one as an on-demand service, and two others called DirecTV Cinema and n3D. DirecTV Cinema will show 3D movies while n3D will offer music, arts, sports and other content shot in 3D. While DirecTV is able to transmit 3D content in 1080i, some content will be broadcast at 720p depending on the content, said Roberts. Sports, for example, is more often shot in 720p, he said.

Roberts said DirecTV is hoping that recent 3D “success at box office” will translate into DBS subscribers. But the company isn’t expecting 3D to completely take over. “We don’t think it going to be something where every single program is in 3D,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dish discussed carrying ESPN 3D’s programming at the Friday debut but decided against it, said Dave Shull, senior vice president of programming. Shull declined to comment further on the decision but speculated DirecTV saw ESPN 3D as a major customer relations opportunity. Shull said it will begin offering 3D programming to consumers at the end of Q3 or the beginning of the Q4.

Dish expects to include some pay-per-view programming and a channel through a partnership with Sony and others, and has informed many retailers of the plans, Shull said. The 3D content will be transmitted in the side-by-side format, he said. The company’s compatible set-top boxes have already been updated to show the programming when the channels go live, Shull said. Like Comcast and DirecTV, Dish is looking toward sports and movies to be the main drivers for 3D demand, he said.