GuyClapperton 12 Staff Writer

I've been writing in the UK's Guardian newspaper about the prospects of 3D in the television world. There was some excitement at CES about the new technology (I say 'new', I'd seen demos in 2006 in Paris) and it's apparently going to be the Next Big Thing.

Or not. In my article I mention the fact that several leading TV programmes in the UK aren't made with HD in mind, let alone 3D. And in the current economic climate nobody's going to be racing to buy a new television while the old one's working.

No, where it's going to make a difference in my opinion is in the display market. Think about an advertising display which says 'Read Guy's Blog'. It's probably going to be quite a dull thing, flat on a poster or maybe a screen. Now what if the letters actually approach you - maybe dance around your head a little while.

No, you probably wouldn't read a blog that was desperate enough to advertise itself like that. But you can see that a new display somewhere, which was fresh rather than an upgrade, or a new games machine in an arcade, is a much more likely venue for 3D than a television screen near you anytime soon. The expenditure is only the first of the reasons. The second is that the equipment needed to generate the 3D image is much more complex when it comes to filming real people - who make up the majority of the pictures on TV - than a logo, game animation or anything else that originates on a screen.

So be ready for a new set of skills to learn if you're into the animation or display market. Unless anyone disagrees..?