Finnish broadcaster Welho has begun testing 3D broadcasts in the Helsinki area, and plans in 2010 to transmit some of Europe's first commercial 3D broadcasts. Sky plans to launch a 3D channel in the UK at some point next year.

December 22, 2009 ― The hype clinging to 3D TV looks set to intensify, with various broadcasters and manufacturers making content and equipment available to consumers during 2010. Now, Finnish cable broadcaster Welho has started test broadcasts in 3D to customers in the country's capital, Helsinki. But the current broadcasts use WOWvx technology, which Philips developed but has since shelved.

This “autostereoscopic” technology works without 3D glasses, unlike the more popular approaches that Panasonic, Sony, etc., favour. As Kari Ruopsa, vice president of technology at Welho, explains, sports events and concerts will most likely be the first content to appear in 3D ― Sony recently announced plans, for example, to record 25 matches of the 2010 world cup in 3D.

Welho has begun transmitting 3D test material via its digital cable network to customers in Helsinki.

Nevertheless, the success of any such broadcasts depends on the number of customers that are able to watch it, which at the moment will represent only a tiny proportion of users. Still, Welho takes this all in its stride, insisting that the test broadcasts will allow them to gather vital feedback from their customers and to tailor the final product to the market's desires ― as Welho's president, Johan Flykt, says: “We were among the first to offer digital HDTV services, and now we are ready for the new TV revolution.”