By Simon Avery Globe and Mail Update
For moviegoers who are just getting used to the idea of 3-D experiences, there is another technology that is trying - quite literally - to shake up the theatre industry again.
It's called motion entertainment, and through some sophisticated software and robotics developed by a Canadian firm, it's delivering an even more realistic experience to audiences across North America.
D-Box Technologies Inc. has created a system that tilts, jolts and sways a cinema seat to the sounds and images coming from the big screen. Several events have boosted the Montreal-based company's credibility in the past 24 months. D-Box has reduced the cost of making its equipment and improved the performance, making the technology more attractive to theatre owners. Since beginning commercial rollout a year ago, the firm has signed on 26 theatres in North America and one in Japan. Each cinema adds a small number of robotic seats equipped with D-Box technology, normally in the middle of their theatre. The rollout to date translates into more than 600 seats.
But winning over cinema owners is only part of the challenge, says Claude McMaster, president and chief executive officer. D-Box has also partnered with almost all the major production studios, giving the company access to action blockbusters in advance of their releases so that engineers can program D-Box motion technology into the movies. Eight of the top nine production studios are working with the company, and D-Box continues to try to win over the holdout, Paramount Studios, he says.
