News

3D Web

28/12/2009
From virtual worlds to the immersive Web
3D Web


This report explores the technological and economic environment of the 3D Web, from the partial use of 3D to fully three-dimensional universes. It identifies the services that are key to enabling the migration to 3D: e-commerce, mapping, serious gaming… and offers a close-up look at virtual worlds, using original business models for buying virtual goods, and at augmented reality, the next central 3D application on mobile devices.

• The first 3D success stories on the Web, i.e. real-time 3D, have naturally been applications for which 3D offers a true added advantage through immersion and/or simulation.
3D is generally located at the dedicated software client or classic Web browser level. Among the major immersive services, video games have played a key role in pioneering 3D technologies that could then be applied to other segments. The massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) segment is the biggest user of very advanced 3D solutions such as World of Warcraft. Online gaming alone generates 7.7 billion EUR worldwide. Another major immersive 3D market is virtual worlds where users interact with one another: 23 million Internet users are actively involved in virtual worlds. 3D also boasts the assets to create simulations which applications like serious games, virtual tours and, to a lesser degree, e-commerce, have all adopted.

• The 3D Web, especially in the realm of virtual worlds and Free2Play games, is central to the Internet’s future development, not only because of the technological features it brings, but especially because of the business models being created for immersive services.
Unlike with other Web services, whether organic (event planning) or display, advertising is a secondary source of income, with the vast majority of revenue earned by online games still coming from pay-to-play subscriptions. Virtual worlds that resemble MMOG use the sale of virtual goods via micro-payment as their prime source of income – a market that is already worth over 2 billion USD. This business model has also caught on with the top social networking sites, whereas 3D simulation services, such as e-learning, are still using classic means of generating revenue (licences, product sales…).

• Although there are still some obstacles to overcome (tax system for virtual worlds, network and computer performance…), the main impediment to the 3D Web’s development remains the creation of content, which requires specific skills and still represents a colossal expenditure.
Although some services can re-use 3D content offline, as is the case with video games, most players need to develop the content entirely themselves and encourage their end users to create 3D content. Things become even more complicated when we move to mobile platforms. Aside from highly immersive ones, most 3D Web solutions will initially offer just a touch of 3D (object, avatar) on a Web page, or in augmented reality applications on mobile – which could be on its way to becoming the next mobile killer app.


Definition
The 3D Web includes all of the interactive 3D content incorporated into webpages. This means that it is viewed by the Web browser and not using independent software that needs to be downloaded (such as Google Earth). We will only be exploring real-time 3D, and not pre-calculated 3D representations that can be displayed without offering the ability to interact with them – and so largely akin to video. The concept of 3D is by no means a new one, the first forays having been made by the Web 3D consortium back in 1994. The 3D Web is naturally being promoted by the industries that use it, both online and off, and which are working to offer the same technologies on the Internet.
The main initiatives are therefore coming from the same industries that use 3D offline:
- for digital content creation (DCC), chiefly in video games and special effects;
- heavy industry and vendors that employ CAD for designing and simulating objects before building physical prototypes.

Segmentation
The concept associated with Web 3D can take a number of forms depending on:
- the degree of immersion: 3D can be used to create a complete representation of an entire environment (like in a virtual world), or involve only a few elements on a webpage (object, avatar, etc.);
- the degree of sophistication: some solutions use true 3D which can be very intricate (subdivided into a great many polygons) as well as 360° navigation, whereas others offer only 2.5D, i.e. isometric 3D.