DreamWorks Animation announced yesterday the expansion of its strategic alliance with Samsung (see blu-ray.com,
January 6), to feature an exclusive offering of the
Shrek 3D film series in its entirety in 3D for the first time ever. This Blu-ray collection will be available during the second half of the year. The news was delivered at Samsung's Full HD 3D LED TV global launch press conference held in New York City.
"It is an incredibly exciting time for the industry at large, as we continue to see the proliferation of 3D in theaters globally at unprecedented rates and now thanks to Samsung's innovation leading the charge the capability to deliver a truly premium 3D experience for consumers in their homes. We are thrilled to be able to offer audiences the exciting opportunity to bring the world and characters of all of our Shrek movies home with them this year in 3D," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Animation CEO.
With regard to back compatibility, Adam Gregorich from Home Theater Forum
attended the press event and confirmed that the 3D edition of
Monsters vs. Aliens 3D played back flawlessly in 2D on his laptop BD drive "without me needing to do anything." With 3D-capable hardware, 3D playback will also be seamless, as at least with Samsung there is an option in the menu that allows 3D BD content to automatically start playing back in 3D.
Update
In an interview with
USA Today, Jeffrey Katzenberg confirmed that "you can't buy the Blu-ray 3D version of Monsters vs. Aliens or Shrek," and added: "They're exclusive to Samsung for a year."