ESPN, Discovery push third dimension for TV as new technology arrives in living rooms

ESPN, Discovery push third dimension for TV

NEW YORK — Two major cable networks — ESPN and Discovery — will beam 3-D entertainment into peoples’ homes for the first time.

Riding one of the next big waves in consumer electronics, Disney Co.-owned ESPN says it will have a 3-D channel for broadcasting live sports events in time for the FIFA World Cup soccer match on June 11.

The channel will not operate 24 hours a day, but plans at least 85 live events in its first year.

Separately, Discovery Communications Inc., which owns Discovery, TLC and other cable channels, says it will partner with Imax Corp. and Sony Corp. to bring out its own full-time 3-D network. The companies did not say which shows it will air on the new channel, but it plans a launch in 2011.