JDSU sees green in 3-D technology

<p>JDSU, which makes optical technology in Santa Rosa, is getting a bounce from the blockbuster film “Avatar,” which uses the company's optical coatings for its 3-D effects, JDSU's top executive said Tuesday. </p><p>“We expect 3-D will continue to be a growth opportunity for JDSU,” CEO Tom Waechter told Wall Street analysts in an earnings call. </p><p>Earlier this week, “Avatar” became the first movie to pass $2 billion in worldwide ticket sales. </p><p>JDSU makes 3-D glasses and projection filters for Dolby Laboratories' 3-D Digital Cinemas, one of the systems theaters are using to show “Avatar” and other 3-D films. </p><p>JDSU technicians in Santa Rosa use vacuum coating machines to deposit multiple layers of thin film on the lenses, which let in different wavelengths of light. Moviegoers wearing the 3-D glasses experience the illusion of depth when a special projector is used. </p><p>The reusable, Dolby-branded glasses cost about $28 each. </p><p>JDSU's Advanced Optical Technologies division, which is headquartered in Santa Rosa, posted $54.6 million in sales for the quarter ending Jan. 2, up about 1 percent from the first quarter. </p><p>Its custom optics products, including 3-D technology, saw sales jump 10 percent over the prior period, the company said. </p><p>JDSU's optical coatings also are used for concert lighting, night vision goggles for the military, protective coatings for spacecraft and computer and TV screens to prevent glare. </p><p>JDSU, which employs 3,944 workers around the globe, has about 540 employees in Santa Rosa. The Milpitas-based company acquired the optical technology business in 2000 from Optical Coating Laboratory Inc., which pioneered thin-film coating in the 1940s. </p><p>The Santa Rosa division also makes color-shifting pigments to thwart counterfeiting in printed currency and holograms for authenticating credit and ID cards. </p><p>On Tuesday, JDSU reported company-wide revenue of $343 million, down 3 percent from a year ago but up 15 percent from the first quarter. Most of its revenue comes from communications test and measurement products. </p><p>JDSU lost $19.5 million in the second quarter, compared to a $723 million loss a year ago, when it took a large accounting charge. </p><p>The company's results beat Wall Street forecasts, and JDSU shares rose 3 percent in after-hours trading Tuesday, after closing at $8.37 on the Nasdaq exchange.</p>