Panasonic, the Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio
and Visual Equipment category, the International Olympic Committee
(IOC) and Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) have announced their
partnership agreement to make the London 2012 Olympic Games the
first ever live 3D Olympic Games. The partnership will produce the
first HD 3D live broadcast in Olympic history, and will allow
audiences around the globe to witness the world's greatest sporting
event in immersive 3D. The 3D broadcast will include major events
such as the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, athletics, gymnastics,
diving and swimming, and will be produced and delivered to
participating rights-holding broadcasters around the world. OBS
will be in charge of producing more than 200 hours of 3D coverage
during the London 2012 Olympic Games by utilizing Panasonic's
state-of-the-art 3D production technologies including the AG-3DP1,
a P2HD professional fully-integrated twin-lens Full HD 3D camera
recorder. "The Olympic Games has always been a pioneer in the
development of TV broadcasting technologies, and has been on the
cusp of innovation since the first live over-the-air broadcast was
introduced in London 1948. Panasonic has been proud to support the
Olympic Host Broadcaster since the first digital broadcast in
Barcelona 1992, right through to the first HD broadcast in Beijing
2008. Now we are proud to announce the partnership with the IOC and
OBS to create another successful era in Olympic broadcasting with
the first live 3D Olympic Games at London 2012. There is no doubt
that the Olympic Games will provide some of the best content for
the 3D market in the future, and that 3D TV will drastically change
the way we experience this great sporting event in our living
rooms," said Takumi Kajisha, Managing Executive Officer of
Panasonic. "For the past two decades, Panasonic has been a valued
partner of the Olympic Movement and of the Host Broadcasting
organization," said Manolo Romero, Managing Director of OBS. "We
are now proud to announce this partnership to realize the first
ever live 3D Olympic Games, and we are confident that this
unprecedented broadcast will be a great success in no small part
due to the 3D technologies provided by Panasonic. Ultimately, we
believe this production of the first live 3D Olympic Games will
make the London 2012 Olympic Games one of the most significant in
the history of broadcasting technology." In the spirit of the
Panasonic Olympic slogan "Sharing the Passion", Panasonic is not
only making it possible for broadcasters and people around the
world to share in the excitement of the Olympic Games through this
3D broadcast, but also through its state-of-the-art digital AV
equipment technologies ranging from professional broadcast systems
to consumer products such as Full HD
3D TVs,
3D Blu-ray Disc players, and
home entertainment systems. Official Worldwide Olympic
Partner Panasonic is proud to support the Olympic Movement
- aimed at promoting world peace through sports - as an Official
Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio and Visual Equipment
category for more than 20 years since The Olympic Partner (TOP)
Program commenced for the Calgary Olympic Winter Games in 1988.
Under the slogan of "Sharing the Passion," Panasonic will
contribute to the success of the Olympic Games through its
technology. In 2007 Panasonic renewed the partnership with the
International Olympic Committee through to the 2016 Olympic Games
in Rio de Janeiro.