Cyberport has successfully completed the testing for live 3D broadcasting of 2010 FIFA World Cup football matches in Hong Kong.  State-of-the-art facilities, including a 10GB broadband network and the Digital Cinema Exchange (DCX) platform, have made it possible for Cyberport to become the global pioneer to reach this milestone.

The testing took place at both Cyberport and Golden Harvest facilities.  Cyberport directly received satellite signals, decoded them and sent them to the two theatres using DCX streaming technology.  Partners in this project include film production and distribution company Golden Harvest and entertainment program provider Panorama.  While Cyberport managed the technical aspects of the project, such as receiving satellite feedback and converting it into multicast streaming, Panorama played an important part in securing the broadcast licensing from FIFA.

"As Hong Kong's creative digital community, Cyberport has become a global pioneer in breaking through technical barriers for Hong Kong football fans to watch World Cup matches live in 3D," said Herman Lam, Cyberport's CEO.  "This also opens up new opportunities for cinemas and distributors in Hong Kong to offer more 3D content, such as sports events and concerts.  I would like to extend my gratitude to the support of the Hong Kong Film Development Council in making this a reality."

"Cyberport has been working very closely with us and provided tremendous support on the technical aspects of the project, making the live broadcast of World Cup football matches in Hong Kong possible," said Allan Fung, CEO of Panorama Distribution Company Limited.  "We truly appreciate their effort and support for the local digital entertainment industry."

The DCX is a digital entertainment pilot scheme which was launched in Hong Kong in March 2010.  With funding from the Film Development Fund and Cyberport, the scheme provides a secure and fast network system for the exchange of digital content between local industries and their counterparts overseas.  A total of ten cinemas under six major circuits, including Broadway, Chinachem, Golden Harvest, MCL, The Grand and UA, participated in this pilot scheme.

Cyberport is excited to demonstrate the world's most innovative motion picture communications technology at a Cyberport Speaker Series event entitled "CineGrid: Streaming 4K Motion Pictures From Around the World" on July 19.  This will be the first CineGrid 4K live streaming demonstration ever shown in Hong Kong and will showcase to the local movie and entertainment industries the importance and benefits of this new technology.

CineGrid is a non-profit international membership organisation focusing on the research, development and demonstration of networked collaborative tools enabling the production, use, exchange and preservation of very high-quality digital media over high-speed photonic networks.  Earlier this year in March, Cyberport and CineGrid had signed a Memorandum of Understanding and both companies will take all practical steps towards building a new user community.

The CineGrid demonstration at Cyberport is made possible through the generous support of NTT Com Asia, a subsidiary of NTT Communications, the international and long distance service arm of NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation).

CineGrid co-founders Laurin Herr and Natalie Van Osdol, will be on hand to give the demonstration and explain how CineGrid members can co-operate to stream very high quality digital media "on demand" to Cyberport from different parts of the world.  Content to be shown will include: a soccer match, an operatic performance, chamber music performance, nature observation, scientific visualisation, environmental recording, and art.

Experts from NTT Network Innovation Laboratories, who are CineGrid founding members, will also demonstrate how even the live output from next generation 4K/60P digital video cameras - with four times the resolution and twice the frame rate of standard HDTV - can be transmitted over Gigabit networks in real time, at very high quality using JPEG 2000, the same compression technology used for digital cinema distribution to theaters.

This is a rare chance to see 4K motion pictures in Hong Kong.  It is also a remarkable opportunity to learn how advanced networking and digital media technology can be used to create and distribute new types of live and post-produced motion picture content at very high quality: for entertainment, art, science and education.

The demonstration is most ideal for media and telecommunications industry professionals, event producers, entertainment and post-production providers, cinema theatre owners and operators, as well as the local information communication technology community and representatives from government and academia.

Sign up early to reserve a place.  For online registration, please go to: http://conference.cyberport.hk.  You can also email conference@cyberport.hk or call the hotline on 3166 3757 for more information.

Event details:

Complementary shuttle transportation running between Cyberport and Admiralty will be provided.

The importance of recycling may already be widely understood, but Cyberport's "Say GOOOOD bye to your e-waste" event brings the message home in a uniquely different way.

With the support from EcoPark of Environmental Protection Department, Friends of the Earth (HK), Caritas Hong Kong, and St.  James' Settlement, the eco event will run from July 15 to 31 at the Ocean View Court of The Arcade, Cyberport, to raise awareness of the green issue by engaging members of the public in a variety of lively and fun ways.

"E-waste is one of the fastest growing waste streams in the world and its toxicity in nature can be indubitably distinguished among other wastes.  "Say GOOOOD bye to your e-waste" event demonstrates our commitment and support in our community for environmental initiatives, and we do hope to give more education to public on disposing electronic waste properly to minimize its impact on the planet.  We welcome your friends and families to join us in Cyberport," said Mark Clift, Cyberport's COO.

The event includes an art exhibition where you will be able to see for yourself the wonders of recycled materials as all the art works are made entirely of e-waste.  The venue will also be decorated with used pallets by local artist Wong Tin Yan, renowned for his artwork using unwanted wood to make DIY furniture.  Hands-on demonstrations and education exhibition boards showing how electronic items can be dismantled for recycling will also be showcased.

A specially tailored 3-minute animation cartoon featuring "Din-Dong" by renowned animator John Chan will be played on a large screen wall, to educate and engage visitors in a humorous manner on how e-waste should be properly taken care of.

Visitors can also view and download an environmentally themed comic animation through an on-site touch screen TV.  Episodes will be updated regularly on Facebook and can also be downloaded for free to smartphones during the course of the event.  What's more, visitors can also play with a set of environmentally themed interactive computer games, using the multi-touch computer Microsoft Surface and iPads available onsite.  The games are designed to educate participants all about the handling of e-waste.

Visitors can also learn the latest information on green living and buy eco-products from the Eco-Fair, which will run every Saturday and Sunday throughout the event period at the Ocean View Court.

Don't miss out on this remarkable opportunity to find out how you can make a difference in our world today.