Skype has confirmed that it is working on 3D video calls, but has held back developed technology so far due to the limits of consumer webcams.
"We've done work in the labs looking at the capability of 3D-screens and 3D-capture," Microsoft's corporate vice-president for Skype, Mark Gillett, said in an interview with the BBC.
"We've seen a lot of progress in screens and a lot of people now buy TVs and computer monitors that are capable of delivering a 3D image. But the capture devices are not yet there. As we work with that kind of technology you have to add multiple cameras to your computer, precisely calibrate them and point them at the right angle. We have it in the lab, we know how to make it work and we're looking at the ecosystem of devices and their capability to support it in order to make a decision when we might think about bringing something like that to market."
Rumors about Skype working on 3D calls stemmed from an advert posted by the firm in April saying it wanted to find a way to create body doubles for worked unable to travel for meetings.
The hype surrounding 3D entertainment in recent years has cooled off considerably as consumers largely ignore the technology in the living room. This led to questions about whether World Cup 2014 games should be broadcast in 3D at all, and prompted ESPN to drop a 3D channel.
"We've seen a lot of progress in screens and a lot of people now buy TVs and computer monitors that are capable of delivering a 3D image. But the capture devices are not yet there. As we work with that kind of technology you have to add multiple cameras to your computer, precisely calibrate them and point them at the right angle. We have it in the lab, we know how to make it work and we're looking at the ecosystem of devices and their capability to support it in order to make a decision when we might think about bringing something like that to market."
Rumors about Skype working on 3D calls stemmed from an advert posted by the firm in April saying it wanted to find a way to create body doubles for worked unable to travel for meetings.
The hype surrounding 3D entertainment in recent years has cooled off considerably as consumers largely ignore the technology in the living room. This led to questions about whether World Cup 2014 games should be broadcast in 3D at all, and prompted ESPN to drop a 3D channel.
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