Comcast is launching its own 3D channel this Sunday (Feb. 20) with coverage of the National Hockey League’s outdoor game in Calgary, Canada, followed by an MTV Kings of Leon concert in Germany.
In announcing the new 24-hour Xfinity 3D network today, just four days after the debut of the 24-hour 3net on DirecTV from Sony/Discovery/Imax, Comcast said their new channel will feature more concerts and sporting events as well as 3D movies and original 3D programming. In addition, Xfinity 3D will bring customers movies, documentaries about African safaris, haunted castles, the ocean, sun, and dinosaurs, as well as events such as Chinese dragon dancing and rhythmic gymnastics.
Last month, Comcast launched HBO 3D On Demand, providing customers access to movies such as “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs,” “Monsters vs. Aliens” and “Coraline.”
Through a partnership with Augusta National Golf Club, Comcast delivered the first live national 3D sporting event coverage of the Masters Golf Tournament last April. Since then Comcast has broadcast 3D events such as the 2010 FIFA World Cup semi-finals and finals, NASCAR’s Coke Zero 400, basketball’s Old Spice Classic and college football games, along with hit movies in 3D such as “Bolt,” “Clash of the Titans,” “Despicable Me,” “Chicken Little,” “The Last Airbender,” and others.
The company that just completed its purchase of NBC-Universal also announced today that there have been more than 1 million 3D views On Demand since the Masters Golf Tournament in April 2010.
“As the leader in 3D, we will continue to bring our customers the best 3D content available today,” said Marcien Jenckes, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Video Services for Comcast.
Xfinity 3D officially launches Sunday at 6 p.m. (ET) with the 2011Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic between the Montreal Canadiens and Calgary Flames at McMahon Stadium in Calgary. The game will also be available in 3D On Demand Monday (Feb. 21).
Immediately following the hockey game at approximately 8 p.m. ET, Xfinity 3D will show the MTV World Stage Kings of Leon concert from the O2 World in Hamburg, Germany, featuring the 2009 Record of the Year Grammy Award-winning group performing their hit singles “Sex On Fire,” “Use Somebody” and “Notion.”
— By Scott Hettrick
Too little too late. I left Comcast for DirecTV 6 months ago b/c Comcast had no 3d channels in my area. DirecTV now has a total of 5 3d channels, which all exceed my expectations in 3d quality.
hi there singed up too comcast 3d yesterday in my area i get a whopping 10 3d tv channels soo look i get tons of 3d channels
hi there comcast has a whopping 17 3d movies netflix has 5 3d movies sony offers 192 short videos 1,000 3d web sites