The "3D Full HD Plasma Theater" first appeared at last year's CEATEC, but there is a long line of visitors waiting to get in here at the 2009 International CES as well. I would like to examine just how serious Panasonic is from their communication at this exhibition.

There are 2 theaters within the booth, A and B, but both are so popular, that in order to get in you have to take a numbered ticket that specifies the show times. When your turn finally comes, you receive a pair of 3D glasses called active shutters and enter the theater. The size of the theater is about the same size as the one at CEATEC, and it has been built in a way to offer great acoustics. The movie clips shown in 3D with great dramatic sound was really dynamic and impressive. Various other content such as sports and music were also shown, so it felt as though the way 3D looks changes depending on how you use it or the subject shown. The footage from the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony really made me feel as though I was actually there; you could really sense the depth of the stadium and see the emotions on everyone's faces.

The system that has made this "3D Full HD Plasma Theater" possible includes the 103-inch plasma TV and a dedicated Blu-ray disc player, as well as 3D glasses. Apart from the glasses, all the other devices are evolutions of those becoming widely available in the consumer market. This is the key point. Products you can find in the market mean that you can easily replace the devices that you have with these new consumer products.

The 103-inch plasma TV used is a full high definition plasma that brings out the beauty of not only 3D, but also 2D footage. Drawing on the excellent moving image response of plasmas, the panel and drive mechanism was newly developed so that it can adapt to both 3D and 2D images. In other words, the prototype has been developed from the start as a product for people's living rooms.

Today, most of the contents, such as TV programs viewed at home on TVs are in 2D. And it's not really realistic to purchase another large screen TV for your home just to watch 3D content. A TV with which you could enjoy both 3D and 2D in high resolution has great possibilities of becoming widely accepted in people's homes. The Blu-ray disc player has also been developed to be compatible to 3D and 2D. And the 3D glasses or active shutters will also be made available in the market.

In addition, at this year's CES it was announced that an "Advanced Authoring Center" within the Panasonic Hollywood Laboratory (PHL) will be set up to accelerate the standardization, development, and commercialization of 3D Blu-ray. PHL was involved in the drawing up of the Blu-ray disc standard and has a deep relationship with the Hollywood film industry. Panasonic has already begun to collaborate on 3D with creative minds in Hollywood. A video message from the famous director, James Cameron, an advocate of 3D, is aired in the corridor where you wait in line for the 3D Full HD Plasma Theater.

Rather than developing a "special dedicated device" as hardware, Panasonic has created a Blu-ray disc player that may be used in people's living rooms. And Panasonic is already making preparations for creating and releasing software and creating a uniform standard. The film industry is also making a shift towards production of 3D movies, so more 3D titles will surely become available in the near future. The infrastructure to deliver 3D to people's homes is gradually coming into place.

At the press conference, it was announced that 3D compatible products will be market ready by 2010, and so with the belief that what comes after full high definition is 3D Full HD, Panasonic has been steadily making preparations. This is the impression I got while watching the 3D Full HD Plasma Theater at CES. The world of imagery is certain to become even more interesting.