QUOTE (AllTheNothing @ May 4 2009, 05:55 PM)

I do have already seen pictures of volumetric displays before; in my opinion the possible applications are limited.
Granted, though the beauty of scientific discoveries is that they react with each other in often completely unpredictable ways; Q.V. the invention of the Vacuum Cleaner and the Tin Can combining in the home of a board and playful individual into the invention of the Hovercraft.
(Admittedly, the hovercraft is itself pretty limited, but I hope you take my point.)
One of the things the demo video made me think of was...
Back in the day before I became a corporate sellout (ALL HAIL MONEY!) I used to be a professional stage manager and assistant director in theatre and opera. The most popular way of staging a piece (play, opera, musical, ballet, whatever) is under a proscenium arch - that big picture frame that everyone sits in front of. This is the format that cinema evolved from.
But another popular and cool way of staging is in the round - where the seats are all around a circular performance space (you may have been to concerts like this if not plays). It's a challenging way to stage something because of the sight-lines, but has some great advantages and possibilities.
Now... imagine volumetric "in the round" cinema. A movie you can see from any and every angle. (well, on the X/Y axis, not the Z, but until we start showing movies in space let's not worry about that)
Come to think of it, if anyone remembers the old DMZ box-set for SR1, very much like the Holo Theatre they had in the mall map.
The technology isn't at that level yet, but once there's a financially viable way to use a new technology the research tends to blossom.