• by Wayne Friedman , October 14, 2010

The slow sales of 3D TVs is not the result of the weak numbers of TV sets shipped to retailers; rather, it's from the number of 3D glasses in the market. 

For example, sales in Western Europe of 3D glasses are poor in terms of buying multiple sets of glasses per household, according to TV set/media forecaster DisplaySearch. In a new report, the researcher found that most countries fail to achieve a one-to-one, glasses to TV set ratio.

"This is particularly disappointing," stated Paul Gray, director of TV electronics research at DisplaySearch. "A healthy level would be closer to two pairs of 3D glasses per TV, so it's clear that these sets, at best, are being chosen for future-proofing."

DisplaySearch says 3.2 million 3D TVs are expected to ship globally this year to retailers, with about half that number -- 1.6 million -- going to North America outlets. Worldwide 3D TVs are expected to grow to 90 million in four years, rising from 2% of the overall TV set market to 41% by 2014.

"North American consumers in particular appear to be playing a waiting game," noted Paul Gagnon, director of North America TV research for DisplaySearch. "Set makers have trained consumers to expect rapid price falls for new technology, and consumers seem happy to wait a little."