There’s a story going around that 3D movies are harder to pirate. Really, then what’s this: Coraline.3D.1080p.BluRay.x264-REFiNED? Are people incapable of buying a pair 3D glasses from Target or wherever it is people buy these things?
That said, the movie industry doesn’t have to worry about people pirating 3D movies all willy nilly. The whole reason why Avatar was such a success is because people bought into the hype, and because people wanted to experience the act of movie-going for the first time in a long time. (They certainly weren’t going there to see Pocahontas for the hundredth time.) You cannot replicate that ZOMG-3D~! factor at home, with the kids running around, your phone going off, and your dog barking loudly. Stupid dog. Yes, you can later on buy the Blu-ray and watch the movie in plain ol’ 1080p, but you’ll never again capture the magic that got so many people into the theater to begin with.
Rupert Murdoch even said that the Avatar Blu-ray won’t be in 3D, and that can be for a couple of reasons. One, the 3D technology in the film cannot as yet be replicated on HDTVs. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but a better reason is this: it protects his theater business. People will get into the habit of going to the movie theater and paying a premium price to see a movie in 3D. (3D movies cost more than regular movies.) Then, if people like the movie, they can buy the Blu-ray when it comes out several months later. The lack of 3D home movies will entice people to go to theaters again. You know the theater owners are happy again.
And not for nothing, but 3D has been around forever: it’s called going to the theater, as in Broadway.