It will be decades before three-dimensional television (3D TV) becomes a mainstream way of consuming entertainment, much like it has taken high-definition TV decades to become commonplace in people’s homes.

That’s the view of Gerdus van Eeden, chief technology officer at MultiChoice, who says that although TV manufacturers are pushing 3D hard through their marketing, the technology won’t become an overnight success.

He says manufacturers are searching desperately for ways to sustain the sales momentum they have been riding in recent years as consumers move from older, cathode-ray tube TVs to high-definition flat-panel screens.

“3D will take off, but it could be decades before it happens,” he predicts. “The vendors are pushing it aggressively, but the rest of the ecosystem is lagging.”

Van Eeden points to the relative dearth of titles available in 3D and the fact that fewer 3D films were made in 2011 than were produced the year before. Even cinemas, which have enjoyed a revenue boost from higher ticket sales for 3D titles, are finding that consumers, for whom the novelty of 3D has faded somewhat, are baulking at the idea of paying more for tickets for 3D movies than their 2D equivalents.

It appears MultiChoice, which operates the DStv pay-TV platform, is also in no hurry to offer 3D broadcasts. Van Eeden says a broadcast standard for high-definition 3D is still being finalised. For now, broadcasters that do offer 3D provide only standard-definition channels.

Though many high-end TV sets being sold in SA now support 3D, Van Eeden — who says he is a fan of the technology — doesn’t believe most consumers are buying them for this functionality. Rather, they’re getting 3D, whether they want it or not, simply because they’re purchasing a high-end set. — Duncan McLeod, TechCentral