Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. (NASDAQ: CIDM), a pioneer in the digital cinema industry, announced that it had been awarded the “Global Media Visionary” award by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) and the Sports Video Group (SVG) for its live 3D nationwide broadcast of the 2009 FedEx BCS Championship Title Game on January 8, 2009.
Cinedigm, who teamed with Sony, Fox Sports and 3ality Digital for the broadcast of the game, was presented the accolade at the Global Media Awards for College Sports. The innovative broadcast, the first-ever fully-marketed deal to deliver a sporting event to consumers across the country, was made possible by digital broadcast to theatres via satellite transmission using Cinedigm's unique CineLive® technology. The immersive and first-of-its-kind viewing experience drew huge crowds to theatres in 35 states, and paved the way for an entirely new kind of sports entertainment experience for consumers.
Jonathan Dern, president of Cinedigm’s Entertainment Group said, “We would like to express our sincere thanks to NATAS and SVG for this honor and to our partners Sony, Fox and 3ality for helping to bring this event to audiences across the nation. We were extremely proud of this event as it marked an incredible new branding opportunity for content owners, and particularly for sports entertainment. 3D live technology is steadily rolling out theatre-by-theatre nationwide, and it is a huge opportunity for content owners and sports broadcasters to extend their franchises and immerse their consumers into the content they love.”
Approximately 6,000 theatres nationwide have upgraded their systems from traditional film print to digital cinema projection, about 70% of which are managed by the market leader, Cinedigm. This new technology provides a number of benefits to audiences and theatres, including superior image quality, live 2D and 3D broadcasts and real-time virtual interaction with the audience.
Dern continued, “There are so many great sporting events and other kinds of entertainment that can now be brought to consumers across the country with digital cinema technology. Cinedigm is the only company that can distribute live 3D on a national scale, and we plan to continue bringing consumers exciting new content this year and beyond.”