AUSTIN – 3D-ready TVs will grow from 200,000 units in 2009 to 64 million units in 2018, says DisplaySearch.
 
LED backlighting and 240 Hz LCDs will serve as enabling technologies for new feature developments in TVs in 2010, specifically for 3D TVs, an area of intense interest to TV manufacturers, according to the research firm.
 
“We have passed the first hurdle,” said Paul Gray, DisplaySearch director of TV electronics research. “The critical Blu-ray 3D specification is written, but now comes the hard work of securing interoperability. Consumers will want reassurance that such things as 3D glasses will interoperate between brands. Retailers will also have the same demand to allow a thriving accessory market to develop.”
 
DisplaySearch forecasts that more than 70 million connected TVs will be shipped in 2012, up from around 15 million in 2009.
 
“The Consumer Electronics Show demonstrated that Internet-connected TVs have finally come of age,” Gray added. “While in the past connected TV sets have seemed to be a solution in search of a problem, compelling new capabilities such as family video calling not only reinforce the TV’s central position in the home, but also represent a bold move to reclaim some of the tasks swallowed by the PC.”