With cell phones capable of displaying images in 3-D set to be released early next year, one Burbank company is positioning itself to be a major player on the field.
Burbank-based MasterImage is the patent holder of Cell Matrix, which allows 3-D images to be displayed on cell phones. The company's founder and chief executive, Younghoon Lee, said MasterImage provided 280,000 3-D LCD panels, worth $4.3 million, for Hitachi Corp. last year to rave reviews.
Sharp — a MasterImage competitor — and Nokia have also developed similar technologies.
"The world has experienced an explosive growth for 3-D cinema, as we've all seen," said MasterImage President James Bower. "From the box-office results, you're seeing the explosion of everybody starting to talk about 3-D and looking at 3-D for television."
But his company's goal is to create an entire new market for 3-D phones while keeping costs low for the consumer, Bower said. For an additional $10 to $15, he said, consumers will be able to buy a 3-D-ready cell phone.