Azusa Battery Maker Takes a Look at 3-D Glasses

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Azusa Battery Maker Takes a Look at 3-D Glasses
Batteries for 3-D glasses.

An Azusa manufacturing startup has launched its first product: a 3-volt lithium battery the size of a quarter designed to power glasses for 3-D TV – a product already making its way to major retailers.

Contour Energy Systems Inc., founded in 2007, announced last week that it had established retail partnerships with Amazon and OneCall for online sales, as well with as Fry’s Electronics for in-store sales nationwide.

“It’s our first product and we’re very excited about it. We believe it’s on the cutting edge,” said Ernie Petrus, vice president of the company’s marketing and consumer division

The batteries, which will sell for a suggested retail price of $14.99 for a package of six, aim to ride the growth of the 3-D television market. While 3-D TV sales are projected to total $2.1 million this year in the United States, some say domestic sales will skyrocket to 5 million units next year.

Each set sold, Petrus said, is likely to require at least two pairs of battery-powered 3D glasses. The glasses are equipped with special shutters that are synchronized with the TVs to create three-dimensional effects similar to those achieved in theaters.

“As we gain distribution we expect our sales to be in the millions,” he said, estimating that each pair of glasses will likely consume at least three batteries a year. “We’re going for a very narrow segment of the marketplace. We’re not going head-to-head with the Energizers of the world.”

Headquartered in Azusa, the company has 50 employees and production facilities in Yuma, Ariz., where it manufactures the lithium powder used in many of its batteries. It also has an office in Newcastle, U.K. where it plans to launch its European marketing campaign next year.

Founded in collaboration between CalTech and the French National Center of Scientific Research, the company’s broader goal is to developing improved battery life in military, industrial, medical, automotive and portable electronic applications.

The privately held company has $29.4 million in venture funding from CMEA Capital, U.S. Venture Partners, Harris & Harris Group, Schlumberger and various angel investors.

Court Order

Santa Monica health and fitness company Beachbody LLC has been awarded $2.15 million in damages by a federal judge who ruled that a New York state resident had distributed counterfeit copies of its DVD-based fitness program.

The program – called P90X Extreme Home Fitness – contains exercises and nutrition advice designed to enhance health and increase musculature. The program retails for $120 online.

“We are extremely pleased by the judgment, as it validates the serious threat counterfeiting and piracy poses to legitimate, hard-working American companies,” Beachbody’s General Counsel Jonathan Gelfand, said in a statement. “We hope this judgment sends a definitive message to counterfeiters that they will be discovered and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”

The Nov. 8 ruling by Los Angeles U.S. District Court Judge John F. Walter came in response to a lawsuit filed by Beachbody following its own investigation into the apparent advertising and sale of multiple copies of its pirated DVDs.

“This judgment demonstrates that Beachbody is committed to protecting its consumers and its intellectual property from the threat of counterfeiting and piracy,” Gelfand said.

Signals From Space

Boeing Co. has announced that it’s received in-orbit signals from SkyTerra 1, a satellite it launched last week.

The satellite was built by the company’s Space & Intelligence Division in El Segundo for LightSquared, a Reston, Va. company that is building a nationwide wireless broadband network. The satellite is designed to provide cell phone service throughout the United States.

“The signal indicates that it’s healthy and ready to begin in-orbit testing and maneuvers to prepare for service,” said Boeing spokeswoman Angie Yoshimura. The testing process should be completed early next year. The satellite will then be turned over to LightSquared for operation.

SkyTerra 1, launched from a base in Kazakhstan, is the latest satellite manufactured by the aerospace giant as it returns to a busier production schedule.

At its height in the late 1990s, the Space & Intelligence Division was building about a dozen satellites a year, a number that dropped to just two by 2008. The latest satellite, which weighs about 7,000 pounds and cost about $300 million to build and launch, brings Boeing’s total this year to five.

Staff reporter David Haldane can be reached at [email protected] or at 323-549-5225, ext. 225.

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