V.J. Maury, CEO of Palace Cinemas, says: "I have always been a little bit suspicious of this since nobody is willing to put in a contract that studios are willing to pay for [the glasses]." A film can have different distributors all over the world so one chain may get reimbursed for their disposable 3D glasses by the studio whereas others may not. And nobody wants to get stuck with the bill, do they?
With distributors and cinema goers having to pay extra for using RealD glasses, this could push Dolby ahead with their Infinitec glasses because the cost of these would largely be absorbed by constantly reusing them in cinemas. Despite RealD's teething problems and the fact that erecting one special silver screen costs around £2,500, they do seem to be doing the best business out of the two at present. But then, they have been around much longer.
RealD's first 3D movie was Chicken Little in 2005, followed by Monster House in 2006 and Beowulf in 2007, with each concurrent film doing better at the box office than the last. Chicken Little actually made a bigger profit from 3D showings than its 2D ones as audiences wanted to experience the new 3D technology rather than the story itself, which was largely considered very poor. Films that continued the RealD trend and encouraged more 3D cinemas to sprout up were high profile releases like U2 3D, Hannah Montana 3D, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Coraline and My Bloody Valentine 3D.
RealD has far more screens compared to the newer Dolby 3D system, which has only been out for a couple of years now, but that could change with big releases like Avatar, The Final Destination, Alice in Wonderland and A Christmas Carol being shown on both RealD and Dolby 3D screens in the next few months. This is where the competition really hots up and by next year we should see a clear winner, but it's already looking like the more flexible Dolby 3D system could come out on top.
"Exhibitors have told us they want 3D without compromise and our new large screen solution provides the right amount of light and striking images for screen sizes reaching all the way up to 21 metres," explains Guy Hawley, Director of International Cinema Sales for Dolby Laboratories. After lowering the price of their reusable glasses, bagging distribution deals in North America, Poland, Russia and China, and being chosen as the official 3D provider for Comic-Con 2009, Dolby has established itself as a powerful contender in the 3D race. RealD should be worried. Very worried.
Resources:
http://celluloidjunkie.com/2009/03/26/battle-brews-over-3d-glasses-in-europe/
http://www.autofasurer.net/wp/?m=200711
http://www.dolby.com/professional/motion_picture/solutions_d3ddc.html
http://www.cnet.com.au/dolby-stakes-its-claim-in-3d-movie-tech-339282656.htm
http://boxoffice.com/3d-release-calendar.php
http://boxoffice.com/exhibition_news/2009/05/26/empire-leicester-square-is-eur.php
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