Nerd-free 3-D
The technology has quickly morphed from box-office smash to the latest retail signage hot button
By Janet Groeber
June 09, 2010
Courtesy of Vira Mfg. Inc.
Given the hype around last year’s cinematic 3-D feat “Avatar,” and with more 3-D films arriving in theaters this summer, retailers, it seems, are finally getting with the Pandora, er, program.
This time, though, there’s no need for those nerdy, flimsy glasses. That’s thanks to auto stereoscopy, a method of displaying 3-D images that can be viewed without special eyewear. Vira Mfg. Inc., the Perth Amboy, N.J-based provider of fixtures and an integrator of electronics and systems, presented auto-stereoscopic technology, also known as Auto 3-D, at this year’s GlobalShop tradeshow in Las Vegas. Alan Rabinowitz, an executive vice president with Vira, explains that users do not need a special PC to generate Auto 3-D, but do need a special LCD screen with an integrated overlay. You might say the display wears the 3-D glasses, rather than the viewer.
Rabinowitz is quick to point out that his company’s particular type of glasses-free Auto 3-D is not lenticular (which also features a type of overlay)—the stuff of ’50s kitschy postcards. What’s different about today’s 3-D technology is its ability to simultaneously marry two-dimensional images (shown in the background) with animated 3-D images (shown in the foreground), Rabinowitz notes.
Techie definitions aside, Auto 3-D is gaining acceptance and adoption—however slowly—for several reasons. “Retailers, by their very conservative nature, are generally last to join the game,” Rabinowitz explains. To be fair, economics play a big role, and this 2-D/3-D type of auto stereoscopy, which was introduced some two years ago, has come down in price. Rabinowitz likens the current adoption of Auto 3-D to that of plasma screen technology introduced more than a decade ago. Initially offered at about $12,000 for a 42-in. screen, that same product costs about $1,500 today.
“Price is always a consideration when it comes to new technology,” Rabinowitz says, but more importantly is content creation. “When (this type of) 3-D first came out, you had to go to a content provider who could program in 3-D. These programmers were few and far between—and pricey.” Now that users have the ability to program on their own (via software that allows end users to drag and drop content), the price has come down. Of course, vendors can supply content as well—to be aired anywhere there’s a screen and a captive audience.
Last year, New York-based technology provider Magnetic 3D completed an installation of 3-D screens in a Times Square street-level storefront to promote The History Channel’s “Expedition Africa,” an eight-part television series. Passersby got the flavor of an African safari, thanks to fully animated 3-D videos where crocodiles lurched and explorers trudged through muck, all shown on some of Magnetic 3D’s largest screens. Found in the windows of a former Circuit City location (at Fifth Avenue and 43rd Street), the installation took advantage of seven windows of display space—each more than 25-ft. tall. At the time, Chris Mosely, senior vice president of marketing, told Adweek: “Not only is this eye-catching because of its enormous size, it also provides a one-to-one personal experience, so it operates on multiple levels.”
On a smaller level, Magnetic 3D’s “Allura” Auto 3-D digital signage product line found its way into this year’s Super Bowl VIP suites at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. There, a “Suites of the Future” program was conceived as a way to enable sports and entertainment venues of varying size to target and deliver customized 2-D and 3-D video, promotional content, as well as relevant game-day information. “The 3-D technology made a great impression on all who entered the Super Bowl LXIV suites,” said Tery Howard, senior vice president of information technology for the Miami Dolphins and Sun Life Stadium. “Guests were amazed at the glasses-free 3-D technology and the high-definition clarity of the displays.”
Retailers might be playing catch up regarding 3-D implementation, but delivering on customer expectations in a 3-D-minded world is the next logical step. “This is what the customer expects from any retailer,” Rabinowitz argues. “The goal of every retailer is twofold. One is to increase the consumer’s experience, while second is to provide enhanced customer service by increasing customer engagement.” To his point, 3-D has the ability “to make customers stop, look and listen. That’s the ‘wow’ 3-D delivers,” he says.
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