Hong Kong fans to watch WC in 3-D at cinemas

Hong Kong football fans were celebrating on Tuesday that they now can watch the World Cup matches in 3-D at cinemas.

About 10 matches are to be screened in 3-D, including the final, semifinals and quarterfinals of the month-long tournament in South Africa, the distributor Panorama Entertainment said on Tuesday.

A company spokesman said several tests carried out last week had been successful and that it planned the first 3-D screening on Friday.

The showings would give front-row members of the audience the experience of being on the edge of the pitch, the spokesman said.

The plan to show 3-D matches at cinemas had been held up because of technical difficulties and a delay in obtaining the rights from football’s world governing body, FIFA.

Shopping malls, pubs and even karaoke bars extended their opening hours into the early hours of the morning to screen the matches. Only one in seven people in the city of 7 million subscribe to i-Cable, the channel that bought the rights to the tournament. An estimated 20,000 turned up at one shopping centre to watch the opening game between South Africa and Mexico.