And there you have it folks. Without as much as a whimper, Sony and LG have announced that all TVs produced from this year on will lack 3D capabilities. As a huge proponent of 3D in the theaters, the writing was on the wall when manufacturers decided to have yet another format war between progressive and active 3D capabilities, causing all kinds of headaches. Unsurprisingly, with little appetite from consumers, 3D went from a flagship feature to a spec checklist to many TVs not even offering it.

Tim Alessi, LG’s director of new product:

 3D capability was never really universally embraced in the industry for home use, and it’s just not a key buying factor when selecting a new TV. Purchase process research showed it’s not a top buying consideration, and anecdotal information indicated that actual usage was not high. We decided to drop 3D support for 2017 in order to focus our efforts on new capabilities such as HDR, which has much more universal appeal. 

As Daniel Frankel notes for FierceCable:

 The moves come four years after DirecTV decided to end its 24-hour 3D programming channel.

ESPN dropped its own 3D channel a year later. Comcast, Sony, Discovery and IMAX also teamed up on a short-lived 3D TV gambit.

Consumer electronics companies, pay-TV operators and programmers jumped headlong into the home 3D market back in 2010, when James Cameron’s Avatar grossed nearly $2.8 billion at the global box office and wowed audiences worldwide with the most effective 3D graphics they’d ever seen on a movie screen.

However, delivering a consistent level of 3D experience proved difficult for the motion picture industry, which has since relegated 3D to a niche premium offering.

The 3D experience was even harder to manage in the home, where consumers in smart-phone using, multitasking age had to be convinced to wear glasses and find a good stationary viewing angle while sitting on their couches. 

So really this is less about Sony and LG killing 3D TVs and more about the final step from the obvious winding down of 3D that’s been taking place. Sony has yet to list any specifications for the gorgeous A1E 4K OLED and X930E/X940E series but if the above statement is any indication to go by, there’s a good chance both series will lack 3D. Will you miss the feature or did you hardly ever tune in for 3D content at home?