The main European telecommunications operators are moving to make large-scale holographic phone calls possible.
Vodafone, Telefónica (O2), Deutsche Telekom and Orange announced on Wednesday that they will develop a platform for the transmission of three-dimensional images in real time.
The mobile operators want to transmit the data behind the hologramme through their network. Thanks to virtual reality glasses, anyone receiving a call should see in 3D the upper body of the person calling and looking at the selfie camera of their smartphone. The hologramme will be distilled from the camera footage.
The project should be available to end users within two years. Financial details were not disclosed.
The telecom industry has been looking for some time to develop calls with hologrammes. While this is technically possible, the process is, however, considered very complex. A 5G network with very fast connections will be needed for this.
