AT&T has not renewed its contract with ESPN’s 3D Network and this is one more negative point for the acceptance of 3D amongst the consumers at large.

A statement by the communications company reads like this: “The price tag for ESPN 3D was too high, especially considering the low demand we’ve seen from customers. We’ve decided not to renew our agreement for ESPN 3D.”

ESPN 3D started up with the beaming of the FIFA World Cup in 2010 and then it has also gone on to beam the X Games, the 2011 NBA Finals, college basketball and football and MLB games.

There have been survey reports which indicate that sales of 3D TV are bound to rise. Yet home consumers refuse to invest in this set stating that the content is at yet quite less and the price is yet high. There is also the issue of having to wear 3D glasses which also can be considered a deterrent.

There was also the factor of $10 being charged by AT&T per month for its subscribers while DirecTV and Comcast provide ESPN 3D for free.

AT&T further clarified on the aspect of not renewing the contract with ESPN 3D as follows: “For our customers who subscribe to the U-verse 3D Technology Package, it will be automatically removed from their bills and any charges after the channel has been removed will be credited.”

As far as content goes there have been 120 events that have been covered in 3D by ESPN since its inception. The number of homes to which this signal was being beamed as per survey reports stood at 60 million. There have also been some companies which are producing commercials in 3D with majority of the company supporting 3D movies for company like Disney.

The first official sponsor of the network when it was unveiled in January 2010 was Sony Electronics. They have extended their ESPN 3D alliance for one more year starting this June. Sony in this way has committed their efforts towards the progression of 3D.

At the time, Ed Erhardt, president, ESPN Customer Marketing and Sales, said, “Working with companies like Sony on such leading-edge technologies as 3D gives us the ability to deliver a whole new experience to sports fans. We’re doubling the number of college football games on the network this fall, which was made possible by our strategic relationship with Sony.”

As for AT&T, the company seems to have adopted a wait-n-watch strategy, something that is evident in a recent press statement: “We continue to add new channels and content that our customers want,” the company revealed before also adding: “We offer several 3D titles today in our U-verse Movies library, and we’ll look to deliver more 3D channels and content, at a reasonable cost, as more of our customers purchase 3D TVs and tell us they want it.”

via thebiglead

Sovan Mandal  (446 Posts)

Sovan Mandal is the senior tablet and tech corespondent for goodereader.com and 3D Specialist. He brings a international approach to news that is not just applicable to the North American market, but also Asia, India, Europe and others. Sovy brings his own writing flavor to the website and is interested in Science Fiction, Technology and Writing. Any questions, send an email