Philips disputed Panasonic’s assertion that plasma is superior to LCD for 3D display (CED Feb 22 p1). Like Sony, Philips defended its choice of active-shuttering LCD for 3D, telling us Wednesday that LCD and plasma have equal merit. On Tuesday, Philips announced a line of eight “3D-Ready” LCD TVs that go on sale this summer in Europe.

Add Philips in Europe to the roster of TV vendors shipping 3D products this year. But it will take a laid-back approach to its launch, offering 3D-capable TVs with the active-shutter eyewear as an optional bundle until more 3D programming is available, it told dealers at its Barcelona briefing Tuesday. Executives at the Atlanta-based office of Funai, which handles the marketing and distribution of Philips-brand TVs in North America, didn’t respond right away to requests for comment on the company’s U.S. 3D TV plans.

Wal-Mart’s plan to buy Vudu marks the discount chain’s return to the video download business and drew mixed reviews from retailers, many of whom said they're leery of selling a service that benefits a rival.

The Nook e-reader will give Barnes & Noble a “halo effect,” CEO Steve Riggio predicted on an earnings call. He said the device is “now our single best-selling product” and is “building traffic in our stores.” The Nook contributed to a 33 percent total revenue increase year to year for the company in Q3 ended Jan. 30, to $2.2 billion, said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Lombardi.

The U.S. Trade Representative’s annual review of intellectual property protection around the world turned into a referendum on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) under negotiation among several countries, in the eyes of many groups. The office received more than 300 comments on which countries should be added to its “priority” and regular watch lists of countries with worrisome IP practices, which should be left off, and the proper grounds for making determinations.

The Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) 2.0 spec that boosts throughput beyond 400 Mbps will be released next month, and products meeting it are expected to arrive in late 2011, Entropic CEO Patrick Henry told us.

Nexon America is “keeping an eye on” platforms including the iPhone and consoles, but “our focus right now is on PC online games,” CEO Daniel Kim told us at the Design Innovate Communicate Entertain (D.I.C.E.) Summit in Las Vegas last week. “The infrastructure isn’t quite there” on the other platforms to support the company’s strategy of free play plus micro-transactions, he said.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Spurred by real estate available at cut-rate prices, Nebraska Furniture Mart (NFM) will decide this year whether it will open a fourth store and build on the 450,000-square-foot format deployed at its location here, CE Division Director Jay Buchanan told us.

MUNICH, Germany -- Sony was unfazed by Panasonic’s claim that LCD for 3D is inferior to plasma displays (CED Feb 19 p3). Panasonic threw down the gauntlet at its annual briefing for European media and retailers here last week, saying “even the best 200-Hz LCD will show crosstalk” that blurs 3D images -- a clear allusion to Sony’s Bravia LCD system for 3D.

The FCC National Broadband Plan will likely recommend proceedings on how to implement set-top boxes as broadband gateways, said several FCC and industry officials. Technical details of what the plan will recommend remain sparse and the broadband task force appears to still be deliberating on how to proceed once the full plan is made public next month. FCC officials also said spectrum plans are still being worked out.