Big step forward for 3-D at home

As if Fox doesn't have enough to worry about with the theatrical opening of its $300-million-plus 3-D spectacle "Avatar" at midnight tonight, there has been lots of speculation about whether the movie's DVD sales will be comparatively low because of the difficulty of watching 3-D at home.

With such a strong emphasis on watching the movie in digital 3-D in theaters, audiences may be turned off to watching it at home because technology to make the same viewing experience possible on televisions lags far behind.

In good news for "Avatar" and the many other 3-D movies coming in the next few years, the Blu-ray Disc Assn. today agreed on a standard for high-definition viewing of 3-D movies at home. In practice, that means it will be easier for studios to release movies in 3-D for the still small but fast growing number of homes with Blu-ray players.

For more details on the new Blu-ray 3-D standard, see the story on The Times' tech blog.

-- Ben Fritz