Sonic and RealD Bring 3D to Consumers

Sonic Solutions and RealD Inc. announced a strategic alliance to develop and release new consumer solutions for the home creation, publishing and playback of personal 3D video content, as well as the enjoyment of 3D entertainment.

According to the statement, as part of the collaboration, Sonic is integrating the stereoscopic RealD Format into its RoxioNow platform. Once titles become available for online distribution, the RealD Format will be used to deliver stereoscopic 3D entertainment directly to a broad range of connected consumer electronics devices. In addition, the RealD Format will be featured in Roxio consumer software applications for the creation and consumption of 3D quality home movies. The new 3D-enabled products and services are expected to be available this summer.

“Our next-generation 3D cinema technology is delivering a premium 3D entertainment experience,” said Michael V. Lewis, Chairman and CEO of RealD. “We welcome this opportunity to join with Sonic, a leading developer of applications for personal and premium content enjoyment, to bring multi-dimensional video to life on home PCs and in consumers’ living rooms.”

The RealD Format is an enhanced version of a side-by-side 3D format that uses a set of filters and other technology that multiplexes a left eye and right eye 3D image stream into a single channel for delivery of high-definition 3D content using today’s HD infrastructure to any 3D-enabled display type.

“With the last remaining technical hurdles overcome and consumer interest in 3D exploding, now is absolutely the right time for 3D to make the leap from theaters to the living room in a significant way,” said Dave Habiger, President and CEO, Sonic Solutions. “Working with a clear industry leader like RealD, a company behind some of the biggest 3D title releases, will help influence and enhance our complete range of our 3D offerings – from our RoxioNow platform that delivers theatrical 3D entertainment to connected devices to our consumer applications that make home 3D movie magic possible.”

Sonic’s collaboration with RealD is part of the company’s Total 3D initiative, which is aimed at furthering the 3D home market through a range of 3D-enabled products and services for PC OEMs, consumer electronics manufacturers, and retailers. Earlier this year, Sonic unveiled professional tools for 3D encoding, authoring and formatting in the Blu-ray 3D format and released Roxio CinePlayer BD, a 3D-capable media player for Windows that recently received Blu-ray 3D (Profile 5) certification from the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA). CinePlayer BD is scheduled to ship on new 3D-enabled systems from ASUS and MSI later this year.

For more information visit: www.sonic.com ; www.reald.com