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February 14, 2011
While the new digital 3D has been taking theaters by storm, the impact of 3D on home video in the last few years has been mostly negative. Studios refer to the '3D effect', the tendency for big 3D theatrical successes to perform less well than their peers when released on disc in 2D. That is about to change, with 3D TVs gaining ground (albeit slowly), and studios releasing more Blu-ray 3D (BD3D, i.e. discs that comply with the Blu-ray Disc Association specifications for 3D) titles directly to retail in the fourth quarter of 2010, day-and-date with their 2D versions. A quick perusal of the customer comments on the relatively small selection of true BD3D titles available on Amazon.com confirms that 3D TV households are out there; they are snapping up movies on disc and hungry for more.
Many early releases of titles in the advanced 3D format have been available only in exclusive hardware bundles. Monsters vs. Aliens, a DreamWorks Animation release distributed by Paramount, is only available in Samsung 3D TV and 3D starter kit bundles, as are the BD3D versions of the Shrek movies. Panasonic has exclusive bundling deals with Fox for Avatar 3D and Ice Age 3. Not surprisingly, Sony's Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs was the first title to actually hit retail shelves in BD3D, in June 2010, followed by Monster House, also from Sony, in September.
In the fourth quarter, however, the 'floodgates' opened and 3D movies began to trickle out. Eleven 3D features hit the shelves, including two more from Sony, three from Disney, four from Warner and one each from Universal and Lionsgate. Of those, six were day-and-date with their 2D video debut: Disney's A Christmas Carol and Step Up 3D, Despicable Me from Universal, Cats and Dogs 2: The Revenge of Kitty Galore and Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole from Warner, and Resident Evil: Afterlife from Sony. (For a more in-depth analysis of 3D's potential impact on the home entertainment market, see "The outlook for 3D Blu-ray Disc" presentation by Helen Davis Jayalath.)
While we expect that 3D TV hardware will roll out relatively slowly, the households that do invest in the technology will be looking for high quality 3D content to enjoy, and Blu-ray 3D provides it. The studios have gotten the message; in 2011 that trickle is destined to become a stream. Five more titles have are slated for day-and-date release early this year, and there are more 3D films in the theatrical pipeline. Studios with exclusive bundling deals are expected to begin releasing their 3D films directly to retailers when those agreements expire. 3D conversions for popular classics, like the Star Wars films and Titanic, have already been announced, and as more films get the 3D treatment theatrically we'll see that product coming to BD3D day-and-date with their 2D counterparts.
Industry research indicates BD3D versions of the fourth quarter new release features sold surprisingly well, considering there were only an estimated half-million 3D Blu-ray-capable households by year's end. 3D sales represented between 10% and 40% of total Blu-ray units sold on day-and-date titles. Unlike today's broadcast 3D, Blu-ray discs deliver true high-definition 3D feeds to each eye, which puts BD in a very strong position as 3D technology begins to penetrate the home market.
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