Consumer electronics companies are betting big on 3-D television. The 3-D landmark movie Avatar is the highest grossing film of all time, so it's no wonder Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, and Toshiba are aiming to bring that kind of box-office dough to the living room. Yet 3-D TVs haven't caught fire among consumers. Here's why it's the fault of marketers--not manufacturers.

At Best Buy's holiday preview event Tuesday, company heads discussed how 3-D TVs were a surprise disappointment for retailers. "The industry overall had higher expectations for 3-D than what we're seeing now," said Mike Vitelli, Best Buy president, Americas.

Indeed, adoption rates have been low. One recent [2] survey revealed that 83% of respondents didn't consider 3-D TVs important enough to purchase. Having to wear 3-D glasses was a central complaint for consumers.

Best Buy, which has made 3-D TVs a centerpiece of its holiday offerings, doesn't think they're to blame. "It's a marketing problem," says Vitelli. "Both in stores and the way [it's] advertised currently, you get the concept that that's all it can do. It's limiting the consumer awareness and acceptance."

Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn [3] agreed.

"One person said to me, 'Gee, I don't know if I would want a 3-D TV because if you don't have the glasses on, it's cloudy or fuzzy," Dunn said. "The truth is, a 3-D TV is your best 2-D TV as well. The 3-D is just a feature."

This is one message that the ads and promotional material have failed to convey to consumers. Try to think of a single commercial where the actors are not wearing oversize 3-D glasses, and flashy images aren't shown leaping from the screen toward laughing families or Justin Timberlake. You'd never know 3-D TVs work the same way as their 2-D counterparts, or that glasses are not required unless the content viewed is in 3-D.

"Marketing [needs] people to understand that it's a feature, like air conditioning in your car," said Vitelli. "Originally, air conditioning was a high-end feature. Now, it's ubiquitous."