Slightly ambivalent, not sure movie theatre seats and movie theater atmosphere would be appropriate venues, especially since most theaters don't sell beer or wine, or spliffs. What about photography? Would the notoriously anti-consumer theater industry allow amateur photography at the game (rhetorical question, of course)? If one's options were to watch in a theater on 3D/HD, or in a crowded bar, sure, but if the options also include going to the game itself, or watching a HD broadcast at someone's house, umm, no thanks.
Coming Attractions: NBA's Hoop Dreams in 3-D - WSJ.com
During this weekend's all-star game in Las Vegas, the National Basketball Association will hold an invitation-only screening party at the Mandalay Bay Hotel to unveil the first broadcast of league games in 3-D high definition.But more than the technological feat, what is notable about this is that it allows the NBA to find a fresh way to bring its sport to fans -- in movie theaters. A few decades ago, certain sports events not available on TV would appear in movie theaters, such as World Cup soccer matches and closed-circuit boxing matches. But now, with hundreds of sports channels and high-definition flat-screen TV sets, getting fans to buy theater tickets requires something extra.
...
Now the NBA wants next. It aims to have games filmed with new 3-D technology -- developed by Vince Pace, a longtime collaborator with “Titanic” director James Cameron -- available in markets hosting June's NBA Finals. The idea is to snag fans wanting a more communal experience but unable to get to the game because it is sold out or in another city. Instead, they can head to the local cineplex equipped with a satellite dish and digital projector and watch a 3D-HD feed among fellow fanatics. Empty arenas might also handle large crowds.Twelve NBA teams (out of 30) were playing at or above 95% capacity through late last week. A hoops-hungry market like San Antonio, where 19 of 24 Spurs home games have sold out so far this season, seems like a natural fit for these presentations. Moreover, the games hurt the local movie business.
“Any day of the week the Spurs are playing, our attendance drops 60%,” says Richard Cieplechowicz, director of operations for San Antonio-based Santikos Theatres Ltd. He expects to see a presentation of the technology today. “This is a natural thing for us to do for our business.”
Many of the details, including potential ticket costs, have yet to be worked out. Theaters that showed the Met's operas charged $18 for adults and $15 for kids. National Amusements Inc. charged as much $10 for the 14 Boston Red Sox regular-season baseball games it showed in New England theaters in 2006. The rival New York Yankees always brought the highest price.
Though the technology does elicit a depth of field not seen in the game on a flat screen before, especially from low camera angles, no one watching will mistakenly think LeBron James is about to land in their laps after a dunk. If 3-D broadcasts catch on, however, the league hopes to enhance its boast that fans of their sport get closer to the action than any others.
....The NBA games will differ in presentation from the baseball broadcasts. The Red Sox games are simply simulcasts of the games' television broadcasts. But because the NBA games would be in 3-D, a separate set of cameras and production equipment and staff become necessary. And at least initially, the games will have no play-by-play announcers and only ten cameras.The games will be shot using pairs of cameras that take in images at slightly different angles, like a pair of human eyes. The double images are projected onto a screen. Users watch the broadcasts with a pair of special large, round glasses (not the red-and-blue-lensed, cardboard specs known to B-movie fans) and each of the lenses filters out one of the projected images, giving the viewer a sense of depth.
Time Warner Inc.'s TNT plans to have 28 cameras during its All-Star broadcast Sunday, while a typical regular-season game has about 18. Mr. Pace says he has learned through early experimentation that with his cameras, staying with each shot longer aids the production in its attempts to simulate an in-game experience.
“Don't chase the ball as much,” he says.
In exploring this new area, the NBA must also take care not to cannibalize its television partners. The NBA expects to reach extensions of its deals with TNT and Walt Disney Co.'s ESPN, which expire in 2008, though national TV ratings are uninspiring halfway through this season. League executives don't expect six-figure audience totals in theaters yet, but they do think the project will help increase the sport's fan base.
Asked how the league would keep its TV networks happy should this arrangement catch on, Steve Hellmuth, senior vice president of operations and technology for NBA Entertainment, replied, “We'd find a way to include them and include the sponsors of the telecast....That's to be worked out down the line, but I don't see that as a hurdle.”
