3DTV is poised to emerge from your HDTV and jump right into your living room. The technology is in place, from the cameras used to capture the content, to the post-production tools and services available to handle the encoding of depth data into the digital image stream, to distribution channels including physical media and broadcast streams, and even to the consumer electronics required to view 3DTV at home.

The demand for 3DTV is clear. One needs only look at the millions of dollars spent at the local cinema box offices by consumers willing to pay a premium to see a movie in 3-D. Much of the movie content has been animated — in large part because it’s easier to create and produce 3-D versions — which, in turn, means that they have been targeted at family audiences for the most part. An entire generation is growing up with the expectation that movies should be in 3-D, and if that’s the case, then why shouldn’t they get the same experience at home? Unlike the difference between standard definition (such as DVDs) and high definition (such as Blu-ray) that can be too subtle for some consumers to appreciate, there’s no mistaking the impact of 3-D on the viewing experience.

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It really doesn’t matter much whether or not plasma HDTVs have better image quality than competing LCD models. It’s a bit like arguing whether LCoS rear-projection high-definition TVs are better than LCD flat panels, or whether HD-DVD is superior to Blu-ray. It doesn’t matter, because the war is over. Just like LCoS rear-projection and HD-DVD, plasma has lost on the field of battle — the retail showroom — and arguing about it isn’t going to change the outcome.

Sure, the plasma market is still more than a dead man walking. The technology holds onto about 7 percent market share, according to DisplaySearch; in order of magnitude, that’s about the same as Apple’s hold on the personal computer market. And the forecast is for plasma to maintain roughly that same share going forward.

The problem is, you don’t survive in the technology world by standing still. Most companies rely on growth and new markets to fund the return on the mind-boggling investments that it takes just to keep a seat at the table in these games. And the LCD HDTV makers are looking at a future in which they will divvy up all the expansion in the marketplace, as well as sales that convert from the disappearing cathode ray tube (CRT) segment. Read more of this story

As the battle for 4G supremacy heats up, Clearwire last week at the Cable Show in D.C. showed off an in-car entertainment setup powered by its WiMAX network. On display were two demo vehicles, one of which was set up in Sprint’s booth, rigged with WiMAX-equipped computer stations.

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Written by Nate D’Amico.

Cisco had its living room coming out this year at CES, while Yahoo, Intel Samsung and the gang are banded together to bring the Internet into the living room via their TV widgets platform. But Microsoft wasn’t sitting on the sidelines, and I think — for once — that the Redmond giant is ahead of the curve.

Microsoft has spent years and billions of dollars trying to develop a living room strategy. After screwing up its WebTV purchase back in the day and its failed reboot with UltimateTV, it’s hoping that the third time is the charm to stake a claim as the leader in the living room. Its current campaign is launching attacks on two fronts. On one side you have the Xbox, sold direct to consumers. On the other front you have the Microsoft Mediaroom solution that’s sold to service providers as a way to deliver IPTV-based solutions.

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