3D VOD Streaming from Samsung, Parnership with DreamWorks comes to life

The much anticipated 3D video streaming service from Samsung has been given a green light, back home, in South Korea. This service will bring a partnership with DreamWorks Animation, and will breathe new life into 3DTV viewing.

Uncertain as to what content will be released, and when, most likely movie trailers, children's educational films, and music videos, will be streaming first in the 3D application, via Samsung’s Smart TV platform. On the downside, the U.S. and Europe will have to wait their turn for this VOD rollout.

For the rest of the world, this new 3D video streaming service will trickle down the line, and will eventually be available all across the globe.

Connected TV market to hit 76% by 2015

While their presence was more subtle than 3DTV and not as in-your-face as non-iPad tablets, connected consumer electronics devices were more diverse and pervasive at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, with every major manufacturer showing off new electronics that have their own built-in apps and can access content from the Internet.

With devices that incorporated complete Internet browsers, HDTVs that offered hundreds of applications, even set-tops that turned current HDTVs into a completely connected device, the theme of combining the home theater set-up with a PC experience was everywhere.

“We’re starting to see some real trends develop here,” said Kurt Scherf, VP and principal analyst with Parks Associates. “And connected TV is not just about online video.”

Consider: In 2010 less than a quarter of all HDTVs were connected, according to research firm Parks Associates. By 2015, Parks believes that number will hit 76% (more than 150 million units). The firm projects that by 2015 there will be more than $8 billion worth of transactions on connected consumer electronics devices, from e-purchases to gaming to VOD and streaming.

For the complete article, please click here.

Research Workshop features Broadband Services, 3D TV, Video Services, Connected CE

Parks Associates is hosting the special one-day research workshop Monetizing the Digital Lifestyle on September 20 to address operator strategies, value-added services, and new technologies such as 3D TV, connected CE, and multiscreen solutions. This interactive workshop takes place at the Connected Home World Summit in London.

Kurt Scherf, Vice President & Principal Analyst and Pietro Macchiarella, Research Analyst will present insight, analysis, and forecasts of the digital living markets in the following sessions:

-- Enhancing Broadband Services: Connected Home and Customer Support
-- Providing Depth on 3D TV Opportunities
-- Operator-provided Video Services: Coming into Focus
-- Connected Consumer Electronics: Platforms, Online Content, and the Consumer

Kurt Scherf will also chair and present on "Examining recent and forecast deployments of connected home services by operators and service providers" on September 21 at 9:30 a.m. In addition to hosting the research workshop and speaking at the event, Parks Associates is a supporting partner of the 2010 Connected Home World Summit. The Connected Home World Summit, part of the IPTV World Series, brings together key players in the connected home value chain to evaluate the commercial potential of connected home services and to clearly understand the technical and financial challenges of supporting them.

Samsung issues warnings regarding 3D TV

CNN is reporting about Samsung issuing warnings regarding 3D TV viewing:

Pregnant women, drunk people and "those who are sleep deprived" should not watch 3-D television because of potential health issues, electronics manufacturer Samsung says on its Web site.

The company also says people at risk for stroke or epileptic seizures should consult a medical professional before watching TV in three dimensions.

Samsung and Panasonic began selling the first 3-D TVs in the U.S. last month.

The warnings come as other TV manufacturers are set to debut 3-D home entertainment systems this year. When watching 3-D TV, users wear special glasses with lenses that open and close rapidly to produce an image that appears to leap off of the screen.

Some of Samsung's warnings apply to everyone:

"Viewing 3D television may also cause motion sickness, perceptual after effects, disorientation, eye strain and decreased postural stability," the Web site message says. "It is recommended that users take frequent breaks to lessen the potential of these effects. If your eyes show signs of fatigue or dryness or if you have any of the above symptoms, immediately discontinue use of this device and do not resume using it for at least thirty minutes after the symptoms have subsided."

The TV maker also says wearing its 3-D glasses in normal situations, when you're not watching 3-D TV, "may be physically harmful to you and may weaken your eyesight."

The warning suggests that some 3-D TV viewers could become so disoriented that they could fall and hurt themselves:

"Viewing in 3-D may cause disorientation for some viewers," the warning says. "Accordingly, DO NOT place your TV television near open stairwells, cables, balconies, or other objects that can be tripped over, run into, knocked down, broken or fallen over."

Perspectives on 3DTV

This week has turned out to be 3DTV launch week, with major announcements from Panasonic and Best Buy, Samsung, Sony, LG, and others. With that, I've fielded some questions from the press that I thought I'd also post here. Here are some of the common questions we're getting, along with our analysis.

What should we expect in terms of 3DTV displays as a percentage of all HDTV displays?
In this article, Samsung notes that 3-4 million of the expected 35 million TVs sold in North America will be 3D, whereas Sony hopes for 10% in its next fiscal year.

We've been pretty cautious about 3DTV (and you'll hear why in the next comments), and even the Consumer Electronics Association, which had originally projected four million sales in 2010 has backed off that and is now projecting about one million units.

In a few years, I do think that 3DTV capabilities will be integrated into TV sets, much as we expect Web connectivity to be a part of most displays. If you want to compare the potential growth path for 3DTV to Web-connected TVs, in 2010, we forecast that 24% of HDTV sales will be Web-capable, and this will grow to 80% by 2014. So, I do think that you’ll see the 3DTV integration occur. Perhaps it won’t be quite as strong as 80% in five years, but it could be significant. I heard other CE manufacturers at CES indicate that 30-40% of their displays may be 3D capable in five years, so they’re being more conservative.

Is there an immediate interest in customers to buy 3D TVs, or will it take a while to trickle into living rooms? How long?
First, awareness of 3DTVs is low. Only about 10% of consumers are highly aware of a 3DTV, compared to 19% highly familiar with the concept of a Web-connected TV. I do think that it will take awhile to trickle into living rooms, as consumers who just went on a huge spree in the last 4-5 years to put the HDTV in the living room are going to be hesitant to quickly replace that set.

What challenges may face 3D TVs getting to living rooms? (Premium pricing, lack of content?)
There are questions about how expensive the glasses will be (we don’t see the quality in auto-stereoscopic sets improving to the point of seeing them in living rooms in the next few years), whether the glasses themselves will be proprietary to each manufacturer, pricing, and lack of content as key inhibitors at this point.

3D has seen some ups and downs before it made an impact on movie screens? Will it face as many of the same challenges as it trickles down to TVs?
I think content is going to fuel the growth, so getting lots of high-quality 3D programming is going to be key. I don’t think that re-rendering 2D to 3D is going to cut it. I saw the demos at CES, and I wasn’t all that impressed. Nearly 40% of consumers indicate that they would be interested in seeing movies in 3D in their living room, so Hollywood is going to have to be putting out lots of good content. About a quarter of consumers indicate that they would enjoy sports in 3D. That presents the challenge of producing live sports in a 3D format. You’re going to need new cameras, new production equipment, and producers will have to re-think how to shoot sports to make this compelling. So, there are definitely some production challenges.

I think one thing to keep in mind is that it took HDTVs about 10 years to get to where we are now (more than 50% penetration). I think 3DTV has even more potential pitfalls, so I would think pretty conservatively about how quickly we’re going to see this grow.