Crowded theaters build momentum for 3D at home
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Meanwhile, Universal Studios Home Entertainment released the stop-motion animated movie "Coraline" in July both in 2D and 3D with the cardboard glasses, but director Henry Selick said he was disappointed with the result.
"I wish they'd waited to do the home 3D release until the technology caught up to what it was in the theaters," Selick told a conference last month. "I'm disappointed in how few people got to see it in the best possible way."
As more living rooms are equipped for movies in 3-D, studios will have stronger incentives to release them for home viewing especially as 3-D movies are expected to spend less time in theaters.
With about 30 3D movies headed for theaters next year and only enough screens to show one major picture at a time, the average theatrical run will shrink to less than two weeks in 2010, down from nearly nine weeks in 2008, according to Charlotte Jones, a senior analyst with Screen Digest.
That could put more emphasis on recouping filmmaking costs on the home market, she said. But the home market is also coming under pressure.
US home video revenues in the first half of 2009 fell 3.9 percent from a year ago to US$9.4 billion, despite increases in rentals, Blu-ray disc purchases and orders for movies on demand over set-top boxes, according to an industry association, The Digital Entertainment Group.
Tom Adams, president of Adams Media Research, said 3D videos could be the shot in the arm the industry needs, especially because it will take a lot longer for 3D TV signals to reach people's homes by cable or broadcast.
"Among the early adopting crowd, they're going to go out and buy practically everything that comes out," Adams said. "It could be pretty lucrative for studios even if it's fairly small in terms of the number of households."
Cable networks are experimenting with 3D, too. Last month, ESPN hosted test screenings of a USC-Ohio State football game in four US cities, following similar events put on by technology provider 3ality Digital LLC.
Many technology companies are banking on a 3D-at-home boom.
RealD, the leading provider of 3D systems in theaters, is preparing to expand production of "active shutter" eyewear.
Sony Corp has plans for a range of new 3D products, from Blu-ray players and TVs to PlayStation games. Meanwhile, Sony Pictures Animation's latest 3D feature "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" was an unexpected box office hit, and it could make its way into homes in 3D once the technology catches on.
With standards being finalized and demand for 3D content booming, "2010 is definitely the year for us to start the 3D business," said Hiro Kawano, senior vice president of home products for Sony Electronics Inc.
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