The Future of TV

With 3D TV being the standout at this years CES ’10, I wonder if the more practical widget frameworks end up being this year’s real break out. 3D is big budget and requires massive change at all levels, while widgets require change, but primarily at the cable box or the TV.  All of the services I have tried so far, Xbox, Boxee, Wii, Yahoo widgets are missing context. I am looking for an integrated experience, something simple and powerful like pause and rewind on the DVR.

The big question for me is what kind of overlay, second screen service is going to deliver that must have feature.

I do not think stream style interfaces on the primary screen are going to work, but maybe on the second screen (apple tablet).

Smaller transparent notifications on the primary screen might be interesting, but will most likely become noise. Maybe personal popups for Q and A. Using a smart parser that understands the current program time code and the ability to answer natural language type questions like where are they, actor bio, or tell me more about this scene. I can see myself asking those questions on a regular basis if it was seamless and possible voice activated.

Thoughts?