Remember the videotape format war between VHS and Betamax in the 1970s and ’80s? When wide adoption of a new consumer packaged-media format is at stake, format launches aren’t always smooth.

Blu-ray Disc is the latest example. It struggled out of the gate in 2006 while engaged in a fierce battle with HD DVD to become the high-def format of choice, a contest it won in 2008 when HD DVD conceded and manufacturers ceased production.

Now, just a year after its introduction at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show, 3D Blu-ray is leading the charge to bring 3D– the next frontier for packaged media — into the home.

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