The video software company ESMLab announced Friday that it would be joining overseas markets as a continuation of its participation in the NAB Show 2016, an international broadcasting equipment expo that took place in Las Vegas in April. ESMLab CEO Jung Hong-su shared details of the company’s plans, saying, “We are currently conducting business negotiations with European, Chinese and Japanese companies, as well as American companies. By the latter half of this year, we expect to see the tangible results of these negotiations.”

ESMLab, short for Evolution of Scientific Media LAB, has provided 3-D Object Virtual Reality services for KBS N Sports since the start of the 2016 Korean professional baseball season. ESMLab’s signature 3-D Object VR is a software technology in which filming is completed remotely using several video feeds from multiple vantage points in order to re-create a location or event. In baseball relay broadcasting, 3-D Object VR is used to show key plays such as hits and runs to create slow-motion replays from multiple vantage points. ESMLab first unveiled this technology at the high jump and pole vault tournaments for the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.

The multiple perspectives offered by 3-D Object VR can not only be utilized for sports broadcasts, but can also assist in video replays for referee calls. When accessed via a smartphone, 3-D Object VR allows sports fans to watch several views of the game simultaneously. This allows smartphone users to enjoy sports games and events from a variety of perspectives, as opposed to the single perspective of first-person viewing.

Despite its current multiangle use, 3-D Object VR originated from a first-person perspective. When it was created, 3-D Object VR entailed filming a subject with only a few cameras and connecting the videos sequentially to create a 360-degree effect. Current 3-D Object VR involves filming a subject with at least 50 cameras, capturing the subject from various perspectives -- up, down, left and right. The video footage is then edited in real time in order to enhance the 3-dimensional effect and viewing fun.

"Multiperspective 3-D Object VR is still very much in its infancy,” Jung said. “However, ESMLab is currently developing this technology faster than anyone else in the world, which will soon help us grow into the world’s leading multiperspective 3-D Object VR company.”

After being officially designated an incubation company in March by the Gyeonggi Center for Creative Economy & Innovation, ESMLab has continued to receive diverse types of support, including the opportunity to participate in overseas expos.

(jshwang@heraldcorp.com)