Sonic Solutions Sets Aggressive Schedule on 3D Authoring Tools

"3D is obviously influencing our consumer line but it’s part of a far broader 3D strategy for Sonic,” DiMaria told us. “It’s pretty comprehensive from the capture devices, the preparation of Hollywood content through the RoxioNow platform -- when that content is available -- and we're also looking at camera manufacturers to team up with them,” he said. The company hasn’t disclosed any OEM deals yet, but DiMaria said all facets of Sonic’s 3D strategy will hit the market this year, including Best Buy and Blockbuster digital downloads powered by RoxioNow.

"We're seeing a broad range of devices coming to market that are 3D-enabled,” DiMaria said. He cited Fuji’s FinePix Real 3D W1 digital camera that came to market in limited distribution last year as well as Sony’s upcoming 3D titles for the PS3 and Nintendo’s 3DS announcement at the recent E3 show in Los Angeles (CED June 16 p2). “We're actively engaging with all the major manufacturers to make sure that they're able to provide their customers with a complete solution,” he said. “They've focused on the hard technical problems as it relates to capture but not so much on the software associated with helping consumers take the software they've captured and put it into a form that allows them to enjoy it on a PC or TV."

Roxio said consumer enthusiasm is high for 3D. In a recent Roxio web survey, 84 percent of respondents said they were interested in viewing Hollywood 3D movies at home, and almost 80 percent expected to be taking 3D video or capturing 3D photos of family events within the next five years. Seventy-five percent said they'd be interested in converting existing 2D personal video and movies to 3D. “There’s a level of understanding there,” DiMaria said. “Avatar was a gift to everyone in creating mass appreciation of what’s possible.” He said the market is still getting educated about the possibilities of 3D and that conversion tools could be quite compelling. “When someone can take an old videotape of their grandfather, run it through an automatic process to render it on 3D and then watch on TV, the level of emotional connection is palpable,” he said. “Avatar might be the wrong dimension of comparison, but 3D is a more immersive experience, so we think that kind of thing will be a wonderful catalyst for the adoption and widespread use of the technology."

Roxio is taking an agnostic approach to 3D formats and VideoLabs 3D will support “a range of formats” from the passive anaglyph method used with red and green glasses to the Blu-ray Disc standard and its more specific requirements. The company supports RealD 3D as well. With Blu-ray, he said, “You end up with left and right images made available through active-shutter technology at a high enough frequency rate -- north of 120 Hz -- so that it’s imperceptible to human eye.” Each eye gets a full 1080p HD image, he said, and Roxio is working with graphics companies including ATI and NVIDIA to optimize content for the personal experience on PCs. Because of its experience on the Hollywood side, Roxio can deliver the same experience that Hollywood delivers for consumer content, he said. The company also offers a 2D-3D conversion tool in Video Lab 3D, which will be customized to each manufacturer’s format requirements. “If you have a stereoscopic camera, we make it a native handling of content with editing, titling, menu presentation all in 3D,” he said. “Or, we can take legacy content shot in 2D HD and automatically apply the algorithm to render it as a 3D experience.” He described the conversion algorithm as “excellent,” but said it won’t be the same as a 3D-sourced image. Seven out of 10 ordinary people, he said, won’t be able to tell the difference.

When preparing content for TV viewing, DiMaria said, consumers will have to make choices depending on the 3D format used by the TV and the source playback device. “We're neutral; we'll render in the appropriate format, but there’s going to be a period of lot of choices for consumers which generally translates to a lower adoption rate,” he said. “We're addressing that with 3D Video Lab in the OEM version, which will be configured for a unique situation to work perfectly with the specific system we ship with,” he said. The consumer version will include documentation and video tutorials that provide an overview of the various output options for 3D and what they mean. “There’s definitely some additional handholding consumers will need,” he said, saying consumers won’t have to worry about choosing a format that won’t be supported down the road. “We will be format-agnostic so the consumer will never have to worry about their personal memories being trapped inside a format that’s obsolete,” he said. He said the company will include output options such as pushing 3D content to YouTube or burning to disc.

Video Lab 3D is currently available to OEMs. A consumer 3D software solution will be available this fall. Digital downloads will also be available by the end of the year, DiMaria said, and won’t require additional bandwidth. “There are ways to deliver the 3D experience to a broad audience that work within the constraints of what’s possible online,” he said, “and increasingly those constraints are falling away. There’s a combination of advanced computer science and the way the human brain works that allows you to do things that consumers will find interesting, engaging and unique.”