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2010 marked the tipping point for 3D movies - in terms of public interest and acceptance. According to a recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers, at a time when overall worldwide ticket sales are decreasing, 3D sales are helping to increase the industry's revenue in fact, 3D ticket sales are currently accounting for some 50%-70% of industry revenue. This high percentage of sales is partly accounted for by the premium that can be charged on tickets for 3D features, and partly on the higher percentage of tickets sold for 3D. For example, over opening weekends, movies such as "Step Up" have been earning 84% of their revenue from 3D, when compared to earlier movies such as "Avatar" at 80% and "Final Destination: Death Trip" at 73%.

Increased UK takings

In the UK, box office takings last year increased by 8% to a total of £1.076 billion on the back of the success of 3D releases such as "Toy Story 3" and "Alice in Wonderland". The UK's 725 cinemas have some 3,650 screens, of which around 700 have digital projection systems, most of which can show 3D films.

Asia outstrips even the US

If you want to see the most dramatic growth from the 3D movie phenomenon, you need to look east. In Hong Kong, the first half of 2010 saw box office receipts increase by 20%, while ticket sales were actually down by 2%. In South Korea, the story was similar, with a 15% increase in revenue on 4% fewer admissions. The biggest growth of all, of course, was in China. Box office takings doubled year-on-year, with "Avatar" alone accounting for 60% of the increase. Premium priced tickets for "Alice in Wonderland" and "Clash of the Titans" also made significant contributions. In Japan, box office revenues increased by 7.7% on an admissions rise of just 0.6%.

'True 3D' or 2D to 3D conversion?

The worldwide success of "Avatar" has appeared to whet the appetite of audiences for movies that have been conceived as a 3D experience, rather than made as a 3D version of what was originally conceived as a 2D movie.