Can’t get tickets to the NBA All Star game? Watch it in a movie theater in 3D
The NBA’s All Star game is rarely a good game because no one wants to play defense. But it’s fun to watch because all of the world’s most talented players take the stage trying to one-up one another. Naturally, it’s nearly impossible to get a ticket to the game, but the NBA, TNT and Cinedigm hope to provide fans not able to go with the best possible viewing experience this year by showing the game in movie theaters around the county — in 3D.
The technology that will make this possible is called CineLive, a system developed by digital cinema company Cinedigm. The company will have its system installed in 80 movie theaters (and as many as 160 screens) around the country for the event which takes place in February. The hope is that it’s the perfect showcase for the technology and theater owners see the potential in broadcasting other events (even local ones) using the CineLive system.
The NBA has used the system before over the past two seasons, but this will be the biggest test yet. If it works well and is a hit with fans, it shouldn’t be too much of a stretch to see this technology as the centerpiece for some excellent Super Bowl parties in the future.
3D cinema experiences have of course been around for a long time. But the innovations we seeing today are far beyond the blue-and-red glasses experience you (or maybe your parents) may have experienced in the past. A few months ago at the Intel Developer Forum, I saw Dreamworks Animation’s Jeffrey Katzenberg show off some of his new animated films in 3D. I was blown away.
If this Live 3D HD experience is anything like what I saw that day, the future of 3D sport watching could be popping with possibilities.
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About the Author, MG Siegler
MG Siegler writes about technology trends and new media for VentureBeat, with a focus on mobile topics, social elements and key news stories. Before that, MG wrote about technology on his blog, ParisLemon. Originally from Ohio, MG attended the University of Michigan where he studied film. He's previously lived in Los Angeles where he worked in Hollywood and in San Diego where he did web development. He now lives in San Francisco.