Video Streaming and 3D Integration

Video Streaming and 3D Integration

The use of 3D in entertainment and business is currently hitting an all time high. 3D cinema is widely available and large manufacturers such as Samsung have launched 3D ready TV.  Recent collaborations involving computer and Internet giant Microsoft have focused on developing 3D enabled Internet browsers and smooth streaming, High Definition (HD), high quality3D streamed video.  Even the 2010 Masters Golf Tournament was shot in 3D for U.S. audiences with 3D enabled TVs and computers.  With 3D in the mainstream and with the mass markets becoming familiar with the superior experience that 3D technology adds to a variety of media, the timing for integrating 3D with streaming video for online marketing couldn’t be better.

Streaming Video

Streaming video online allows Internet users to view and experience video content without having to waste time waiting for an entire video file to download.  The phenomenally popular YouTube is a good example of how this media delivery method can be used to distribute rich content on demand to millions of users world wide every day. The advanced coding and video distribution technologies mean that audiences can experience dynamic and highly engaging content in a fast, smooth, and uninterrupted way. The technicalities of video streaming involve production of a video (pre-recorded or live) which is compressed to send (and decompressed at the other end), and transmitted to a Web server which is capable of delivering the same content to multiple users at once if necessary, and is viewed by the target audience via the use of a media player.  The media player used by the end viewer can be for example one of the many widely available players which work with the most common streaming file formats e.g. Windows Media, RealMedia, QuickTime etc, or downloadable proprietary or other specific players which relate to the particular format e.g. more specialised 3D players.

Integrating 3D

The widespread domestic and commercial use of the Internet, the wide availability of high bandwidth and fast Internet connections and standard protocols of all kinds, the huge technological advancement of and investment in viewing capabilities, and a mass market that are switched on to and hungry for the benefits of 3D provide the perfect conditions for its integration with video streaming. 3D itself provides a range of benefits which massively enhance any form of communication, presentation, and education.  3D allows concepts or accurate representation of real things e.g. products, components, buildings, vehicles etc to be clearly visualised and experienced in a highly realistic context. The subjects of the 3D animation and visualisation can be demonstrated and experienced like never before because the viewer can navigate them, move around them, view them and operate / work them, and interact with them in a way that allows unparalleled levels of comprehension and true understanding.

Application

For most business organisations, integration of 3D into streaming video made available via a website presents a major opportunity in marketing communications. Videos incorporating 3D motion graphics and product visualisation can allow website users to experience realistic fly throughs, presentations and the exploration of art and architecture, as well as facilities management tours.  The maximum leverage and added value can be gained from 3D advertising showreels, physics engines, and corporate presentations by making them available online via streaming video. The same technique can even allow website visitors, customers or potential customers to experience real time tours.  This can be an incredibly effective technique, particularly where creating the environment or physically moving the person to the environment being shown is simply too expensive or not financially or physically possible at that moment in time.

Adding a dramatic extra dimension to what is already a compelling way of presenting information and ideas over the web is therefore a very powerful sales, communication and educational tool which could provide a strong competitive edge to all organisations that use it.


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