NEW YORK (Reuters) – While James Cameron's 3D sci-fi epic "Avatar" took the box office by storm instantly, the road to success will be much longer for Best Buy Co Inc, which is making a big bet on 3D televisions this year.

The top U.S. electronics retailer unveiled a line of 3D TVs made by Japan's Panasonic in New York City on Wednesday, as it joins a host of companies hoping to cash in on the new technology.

While many expect 3D TVs to draw curious shoppers to Best Buy stores, helped by blockbuster 3D films like "Avatar" and the new "Alice in Wonderland," they do not see the higher-priced products acting as a big sales catalyst or a quick-fix for weak margins in 2010.

"3D TV is a nice to have. Certainly not a must-have. To me, it is kind of like a cherry on a sundae," BB&T Capital Markets analyst Anthony Chukumba said.

"I don't necessarily think that 3D TV is going to move the needle a ton for Best Buy in 2010," he said.

Barclays analyst Michael Lasser estimated the margin on a 3D TV to be "meaningfully higher" than what Best Buy earns on an HDTV of a comparable size, but added demand for the products was uncertain at the moment.

"I don't think 3D TV will be decisive for margins," Goldman Sachs' Matthew Fassler said, adding, "It is not reasonable to expect consumers to pay a premium for technology without sufficient associated content."

Many manufacturers are now tying up with studios, broadcasters and game developers for deals to boost offerings of 3D content.

Walt Disney Co's ESPN is rolling out its 3D network in June beginning with the World Cup soccer match between hosts South Africa and Mexico in Johannesburg. Discovery, Sony and IMAX are also scheduled to launch a 3D network in the United States in 2011.

Besides Panasonic, Sony and Samsung have also announced plans to launch 3D TVs in coming months, hoping they will become the next big thing in the electronic industry.

The 50-inch Panasonic VIERA VT20 Plasma 3D HDTV unveiled by Best Buy on Wednesday is priced at around $2,500, with accompanying eyewear costing about $150 a pair.

In addition to 3D content, high pricing and the required use of glasses are other hurdles for the new technology.

According to a survey by market research firm NPD, more than half of consumers cited the glasses were an "inhibitor," NPD analyst Ross Rubin said.

Panasonic, however, said it looked to sell about 2 million units of its 3D TVs in the first year of launch.

ENOUGH TAKERS?

Companies are counting on sports fans, hardcore gamers, movie buffs and the not-so-price-sensitive technology fans to be early adopters, but skeptics doubt if there will be enough takers for 3D TVs in the near term.

"I think the real question is, will consumers want to replicate the cinema experience, the theatrical experience with glasses, in their living room?," Fassler said

"3D is just one more little product that drives people into the store. Is it going to be 10 percent of sales? No way!" Credit Suisse's Gary Balter said.

Even over the long term, higher-priced 3D TV may not be the ultimate cure for anemic margins at Best Buy.

Flat-panel TVs account for only about 20 pct of Best Buy's annual sales of about $45 billion and 3D is going to be an even smaller portion even in 2011 or 2012, BB&T's Chukumba pointed out. "The impact is going to be muted," he said.

Michael Vitelli, Best Buy's president of the Americas, said he had no "specific expectations" for 3D TVs in 2010, but added that the new technology should help over the long term by spurring demand for higher-margin accessories and ancillary services.

Global demand for 3D TVs will probably reach 15.6 million units in 2013 from an estimated 1.2 million this year, according to research firm DisplaySearch. That figure could reach 64 million in 2018, when the research firm expects total revenues to hit $17 billion.

(Reporting by Dhanya Skariachan, editing by Matthew Lewis)

NEW YORK – Stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Monday on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market:

NYSE:

American International Group Inc., up $1.02 at $29.10

AIG said it will sell its American Life Insurance Co. division for $15.5 billion to MetLife Inc. in a government-approved deal.

McDonald's Corp., up $1.45 at $65.12

Strong overseas growth outweighed U.S. sales as the world's largest fast-food chain posted a 4.8 percent increase in sales.

Tim Hortons Inc., up 25 cents at $31.99

The operator of restaurants that sell everything from donuts to specialty teas expects to beat Wall Street's expectations for the year.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd., down 73 cents at $12.15

The solar cell maker said it slid to a loss driven by one-time charges, but predicted module shipments to nearly double this year.

NASDAQ:

Yahoo Inc., up 46 cents at $16.52

A JMP Securities analyst upgraded the Internet company, citing a potential a boost from its search deal with Microsoft Corp.

Research In Motion Ltd., up $3.89 at $73.39

An analyst upgraded the handset maker and boosted his estimates and price target, while rival Palm Inc. received a separate downgrade.

Xyratex Ltd., up $1.81 at $17.14

The British data storage company sharply raised its first-quarter profit and sales guidance on improving demand.

IMAX Corp., up $1.12 at $14.84

A record opening for "Alice in Wonderland" gave shares of the giant-screen movie technology company a big boost.

LOS ANGELES – Five giant billboards have been removed from buildings in Hollywood near the site of the Academy Awards after Los Angeles prosecutors charged four people and four companies with hanging the so-called supergraphics illegally.

The ads for Asics athletic gear that hung horizontally across several storefronts near the Kodak Theater where the Oscars will be held Sunday were all removed by Saturday.

Three of the four people charged have posted $100,000 bail each.

City law bans the installation of supergraphics, vinyl images draped over buildings.

Last week in the most severe step taken in the ongoing battle over the banners, Los Angeles businessman Kayvan Setareh was jailed on $1 million bail for hanging an enormous movie ad on a Hollywood Boulevard building he owns near the Kodak Theatre.

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Information from: Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com

NEW YORK – Cablevision's 3.1 million customers in New York could lose access to the Academy Awards on Sunday if ABC's parent company follows through on a threat to pull the plug at midnight Saturday in a dispute over payments.

The Walt Disney Co. is seeking an additional $40 million a year in new fees, according to Cablevision Systems Corp. spokesman Charles Schueler. He said the company currently pays more than $200 million a year to Disney.

Disney said Cablevision charges customers $18 per month for basic broadcast signals, but does not pass on any payment for ABC to Disney.

The dispute is similar to a standoff at the end of last year between News Corp. and Time Warner Cable over how much Fox television station signals were worth. That tussle, which threatened the college football bowl season and new episodes of "The Simpsons," was resolved without a signal interruption.

Cablevision also feuded with Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. in a January dispute that temporarily forced the Food Network and HGTV off the service. Neither side provided terms of an agreement that restored the channels after three weeks.

Disney and Cablevision have been airing dueling advertisements about the ongoing dispute for the past week. Also, lawmakers in Washington have chimed in, suggesting the Federal Communications Commission step in.

The company's previous contract with Cablevision expired more than two years ago, but it was extended month by month as talks continued.

Under previous arrangements, Disney was paid for cable channels such as ESPN and Disney Channel, but gave its ABC broadcast signal away for free, a situation that most broadcasters are now trying to change.

"We can no longer sit back and allow Cablevision to use our shows for free while they continue to charge their customers for them," WABC-TV president and general manager Rebecca Campbell said in a statement.

Schueler suggested that disgruntled viewers should blame Disney's top executive if the station goes dark.

"There is one man who is going to decide whether New York gets to see the Oscars, and that's Disney President and CEO Bob Iger," he said in a statement late Friday. "We call on Bob Iger to stop holding his own viewers hostage, end his threats to pull the plug on ABC at midnight and instead work with us to reach a fair agreement."

WABC-TV is the most watched TV station in the country, said Disney, which is based in Burbank, Calif.

The signal, however, can still be pulled from the air for free with an antenna and a new TV or digital converter box.

LOS ANGELES – City prosecutors have charged four people and four companies with illegally hanging giant billboards at an intersection near the site of the upcoming Oscars, days after they jailed a man for putting up a separate eight-story supergraphic ad across the street.

A lawyer representing Alexander Patrick Kouba and France M. Luanghy appeared in court Thursday to post $100,000 bail for each of the men, Assistant Supervising Deputy City Attorney Jose Egurbide said. Attorney Steve Madison entered no plea on their behalf, Egurbide said.

The eight defendants are each charged with 10 misdemeanor counts of violating the city's municipal code by helping to install and maintain the two large ads for Asics athletic gear.

The ads extend horizontally over several storefronts near the Kodak Theatre, the site of Sunday's Academy Awards show.

Egurbide said both signs posed fire hazards, while one was being held up with substandard bracing.

"Our priority is that we get that sign down as soon as possible," he said. "We will be prepared to go to trial if the sign does not come down."

He declined to answer whether the defendants would avert a trial if the sign did come down.

Madison also represented the billboard firm Redevelopment Association LLC, which was named as an additional defendant in the complaint.

Egurbide said there were outstanding warrants for the arrest of two additional defendants named in the complaint, Mazen I. Nazzal and Thomas Edward Curtin. The suit also mentions companies Yorkwood LLC, Yorkbury Investments LLC and Hangtime Installers Inc.

Nazzal, who is listed in state filings as an agent for Yorkwood, did not answer a call seeking comment. A message left with Hangtime, for which state records list Curtin as an agent, was not immediately returned. No phone or state business records could be found for Yorkbury.

Madison also did not return a call seeking comment, nor did an Asics America Corp. spokeswoman.

The new charges appeared to be another escalation in the city attorney's war against large unpermitted billboards.

Los Angeles businessman Kayvan Setareh was jailed on $1 million bail for hanging an enormous ad for the movie "How to Train Your Dragon" last week on a Hollywood Boulevard building he owns near the Kodak Theatre.

After he agreed to take down the sign, his bail was reduced to $100,000, which he paid.

The city attorney's office also filed a civil complaint last week against a business accused of installing supergraphic signs at 12 other Los Angeles locations.