Deluxe to Roll out 3D Blu-ray Prod'n Services

Following the recent string of 3D Blu-ray Disc player and 3D TV launches, Deluxe Digital Studios is rolling out 3D Blu-ray production services next month, with capacity ramping up to finish four movies a month by the fourth quarter.

"We are talking to just about every major content owner about bringing 3D content to market, and we expect to be working on at least a dozen titles by the end of the year," said Peter Staddon, senior vp worldwide sales and marketing at Deluxe Digital. "With Avatar and Alice in Wonderland being so successful in 3D, I think you will soon see virtually every major movie with a 3D component."

Already among the industry's largest providers of Blu-ray authoring services, the Deluxe Entertainment Services subsidiary now complies with the 3D Blu-ray standard that was finalized by the Blu-ray Disc Assn. in December. This standard enabled the recent introduction of 3D-capable Blu-ray players by manufacturers including LG, Panasonic, Samsung and Sony. The Sony PS3 also will support the standard. A 3D TV is required to view the stereo images.

"We are able to streamline the entire 3D Blu-ray supply chain for content owners, starting from the finished movie or television show and ending with fully approved 3D Blu-ray check discs and a project that is ready for mass replication and distribution," said Rob Seidel, exec VP and GM of Deluxe Digital.

The new Deluxe services include the design of menus and bonus materials, creation of subtitles, compression of video, BD-J programming, authoring, AACS copy-protection processing and player-compatibility testing. The pipeline includes proprietary systems and technologies, including a 3D subtitling tool and a BD-J 3D emulator.

"Our internal research and development team finished several of these tools in 2009, and we're completing the remaining development now," said Todd Collart, senior vp new media at Deluxe Digital.

Companies including Panasonic, Sony and Technicolor also have announced that they will offer 3D Blu-ray production services.

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter