A live and interactive 3D hologram was beamed across Europe as part of the BlachReportDialog, a German live communications conference.
The hologram was beamed from a London studio onto a stage, before a live audience in Berlin. Musion, the global licensor for the telepresence system called Eyeliner, stressed this was an improvement on the 3D “illusion†that CNN created in the US presidential election.
The CNN illusion created the appearance of a 3D hologram, beamed into the news studio, for viewers, in reality the anchorman was looking at a red dot.
When a hologram of Ian O’Connell, a director of Musion, was transmitted onto the stage in Berlin, it answered questions, laughed and appeared real to the audience. Corinna Jess, his PA and a classically trained singer, also appeared on stage and sung an aria from Johann Strauss’ Die Fledermaus.
Musion claims this was the first time a live hologram had been sent in real time with full interaction.
Masergy, network service provider, supplied a communications network with video transport enabling high definition images and sound as well as the London studio.
"This demonstration represents what is possible when you combine incredible video technology with an advanced video network," said John Dumbleton, SVP and managing director of Masergy. "Musion's faster frame rate of 50 interlaced frames per second creates the natural image edge blurring necessary for 3D images to look realistic. This incredible quality is possible because Masergy's global network was purpose-built to deliver superior video performance at all times and under all network conditions."
"Most telecommunications companies see it mostly for use in the boardroom but we think it can be far more inclusive than that," O’Connell added. "Because it's bi-directional both sides interact in real time, so it could work in education where a teacher can be transmitted to a class of two or three hundred but by using touch screen technology, she could home in on any PC for one to one with a particular student. Churches can transmit charismatic preachers, prisoners can have visits with their families in their own living rooms, engineers and inventors can collaborate, entertainers can appear in nightclubs to launch a new album in 1,000 music stores simultaneously or your front room and the possibilities for politicians are obvious. What the implications are for dating I dread to think.â€