The BBC iPlayer showed its ability to move the market, and a 3D service could be next, writes Richard Gillis.
THE SHEER size of the BBC means it tends to dominate any new market it enters. From TV production, film-making and sport to print publishing and the web, Britain's public sector behemoth helps to sustain whole sectors of the media industry. This is also true for their patronage of new technologies.
Take the corporation's new video on demand download service, the iPlayer, the success of which has brought the age of true convergence between television and internet forward, perhaps by years.
In the first three months of this year more than 42 million programmes have been downloaded by viewers around the world. And by extending the reach of the iPlayer the BBC can expect those figures to increase still further.
Over the last month, deals have been signed that allow subscribers of the Virgin cable television platform to use iPlayer to catch up on missed programmes. This means Virgin's 3.5 million customers are able to download 350 hours of television from the previous week at no added cost.
"We have always envisaged [the] BBC iPlayer on a TV platform and in the living room," said Ashley Highfield, who was until recently the BBC's director of future media and technology. "By working with Virgin Media, this ambition has been realised. This partnership takes us a step closer to transforming the way our audiences watch TV."
Meanwhile, computer game players are able to access the iPlayer service via Nintendo Wii, with other platforms such as Playstation and Xbox set to follow suit.
However, this explosion of activity from the BBC has put pressure on the web infrastructure currently operated by Internet Service Providers (ISPs). UK net service firm Plus Net reported 66 per cent growth in the volume of streaming traffic on its network since iPlayer was launched, which translates to an increase in the cost of handling that traffic from €21,730 to €65,200 per month. In a highly competitive market for broadband in the UK, this means ISPs are taking a hit financially, as they compete for custom with some very significant new entrants to the market, such as Vodafone and Orange.
And it is not just on the web that the BBC's innovation strategy is being felt. Its decision to experiment with live 3D streaming has energised this area of the TV and film production market. Meanwhile, back on the sofa, viewers may soon need to buy yet another new telly.
Some 40 years after the inaugural colour TV broadcast was shown at the Riverside Studios, in west London, the same venue hosted another first: a live 3D test transmission beamed in by satellite. The event was England's RBS Six Nations rugby match against Scotland, shown before 200 people from across the sport, music and media industries.
The audience sat wearing special 3D dark glasses as BBC Sport, working in partnership with the 3D Firm, a consortium of specialist companies, sent pictures from Murrayfield to Hammersmith, with a running commentary taken from Radio 5 Live.
By using just three cameras from around the ground, the production had a minimalist feel; one camera was withdrawn from use due to rain in Edinburgh. As they emerged blinking from the auditorium, several of the attendees likened the experience to that of being at a live game.
Most of those present saw enough to suggest that live 3D was part of television's future. But how it develops from here is unclear. There is speculation that major sports events such as Olympics and World Cups will now be screened live on big screens in major cities.
The BBC has "absolutely no plans" for other live 3D transmissions, says Aashish Chandarana, BBC Sport's head of innovation. "This was a one-off, we don't have a strategy," says Chandarana. "It's important that we are always looking to see how we can improve things for audiences and this was about understanding the broadcast end of the chain."
Demand for 3D is coming mainly from the commercial sector, where several business models are emerging. However, as more content becomes available in the new format, the greater the push into the home market.
"For the time being screening will be limited to audiences through cinema or bespoke locations," said Chris Dyer, partner of Can Communicate, one of the 3D Firm consortium. He suggests that premium events, where demand for tickets outstrips supply, lend themselves to successful live 3D transmission.
Likewise, cinema owners view 3D as a way of putting some distance between themselves and the burgeoning home cinema market. According to Screen Digest, there were 47 digital 3D screens in the UK by the end of 2007, with forecasts suggesting this number will rise to 429 by 2011. Of the 1,298 digital 3D screens worldwide at the end of 2007, 75 per cent were in America.
Many Hollywood studios have either recently released 3D movies or have them in production. Disney-Pixar is to re-release the 1995 hit animation film Toy Storyin 3D, ahead of the third movie in the series, also in 3D, in 2010. DreamWorks will produce all its movies in 3D from 2009. U2 3D, a film of the Irish group's live act, is currently in cinemas.
But it's the domestic television market that will determine whether 3D becomes the next big thing, or just another passing technology. And this may be a harder sell. To get the full 3D effect, viewers will need to buy a stereoscopic television. Philips has developed a prototype 132in 3D TV that offers an "out of screen" experience and does not require viewers to wear glasses. The first sets will come with a whopping €10,000 price tag.
Domestic sales of 3D TV will get a boost from the computer games industry, which is producing compatible titles.
