3-D(OA)?
I’m a bit late in updating my blog from CES, but as they say, better late than never.
While at CES, I participated in a number of great panels including those from CESCA (the Consumer Electronic Supply Chain Academy) as well as Digital Hollywood. There was a lot of great participation from the industry, and I learned quite a bit. One of my favorite topics was about ‘TV Everywhere’ – about watching TV on all devices whenever and wherever you want. The technology guys in the discussion were convinced that this is just 3-5 years away from mainstream while the content guys all said 7-10 years. What an interesting difference – and it shows, like many situations, that it isn’t about the technology as much as it’s about how you use it.
The other big thing at CES this year was all the 3-D televisions. You may have already read a lot about this, especially if you followed CES at all. I know that I’ve heard a lot about how cool it is, how some people think it’s impractical, etc.
From my own point of view, just like the discussion about “TV Anywhere’, I think it comes back down to the content. Live sporting events in 3D? Adult content in 3D? Video gaming in 3D? Those are probably going to be the drivers. But, I think there might also be a brewing content war – each different TV maker has a slightly different technology for the glasses, and I think the compatibility issues are going to be a big problem. How do you invite 5 friends over to watch “the game” in 3D? You all have to be using your own glasses, and these aren’t going to be cheap – probably $30 each.
So, while 3D is making waves in the theater, and there might be some consumer demand, until the content is there and the standards are worked out, it’s going to be a long way off. Technology: 3-5 years, reality: 7-10…
