Sports in a new dimension

While Andy Murray's groundstrokes failed to secure him victory at last week's ATP Tour Finals, behind the scenes groundbreaking experiments that could change the way sport is broadcast were taking place.

As well as covering the end-of-season tennis tournament at the O2 Arena, Sky also took the opportunity to send a team and a lorry-load of new hi-tech equipment to North Greenwich to continue its development of 3DTV.

The broadcaster is refusing to constrain its research by setting dates and deadlines for when exactly 3DTV will go live, but is aiming for sometime next year - and pubs will be first in the queue.

Those that take up the option could be in for something of a treat.

Gone are the days of squinting through a pair of red and green lenses to convince yourself a grainy image is in 3D.

The combinations of the screens, cameras and glasses Sky is using is literally giving sport a new dimension.

Players do not jump out of the screen and you do not need to duck out of the way of tennis balls flying towards your head. But there is so much depth to the images that you feel like you are actually there. In fact, I was there, and watching it on the 3D screen was almost as impressive as the live event.

And the outlay for pubs should not be huge. HD-ready boxes are compatible with the new technology, but pubs will need to invest in 3D screens, which are currently being developed by various companies.

And the thorny issue of subscription fees to a new 3D channel has yet to even be discussed as Sky concentrates on perfecting the product.

"This is not about trying to rush out a package, that's the wrong thing to do. This is about viewer quality," said Sky Sports operations director Darren Long.

Noel Edmonds in 3-D

So what could pubs be in line to see? So far Sky has used the technology to film football, rugby, ballet, and the TV shows Gladiators and Are You Smarter than a 10 Year-Old? But the wisdom of beaming Noel Edmonds and his bold shirts in 3D has to be questioned.

The point is Sky is still trying to maximise the technology.

In the outside broadcast van, teams of staff - in extra-cool 3D specs - played with equipment to work out the best angles to cover things from, the depth of graphics and how to show replays, in excruciating detail.

Rallies of words such as inter-ocular, stereography, convergence rates and inter-axial hurt my head more than I feared sustained viewing of 3DTV would.

Although 3D technology has been around in various forms for years, it is clear that Sky has grand ambitions and wants it to become part of the general vernacular in the same way that HD and Sky+ have.

To achieve that, Long said it was essential to cover all the angles: "How do we challenge the way we cover events? Where do we put the cameras? How do we ensure that the viewer gets an enhanced experience? And how do we make it an experience where they do not have to work hard to watch it?"

And will pubs and the public go for it? The proof will be in the viewing, but Long is confident. "So far we have not had anyone say 'what's this all about?'" he said. "Everyone says 'where do we get one of these sets from?'"