New York-- The flat-panel display is getting a makeover.

Over the years, the flat-panel display has gotten larger and thinner but has always remained flat.  Developments out of  Carlsbad, Calif.-based Ostendo Technologies is changing all that, ushering in a new era of curved displays.

“It’s been a long time since somebody has come out and done anything than make (the screen) a bit better,” said J.B. Daines, vice president of sales and marketing at Ostendo Technologies, which was founded in 2005. “The world isn’t flat. Why should your display?”

Ostendo Technologies  is partnering with a handful of computer and computer peripheral makers including Alienware and NEC Display, to bring curved displays to the market.

Ostendo’s monitor, which is a 42-inch display, uses four digital light processing, or DLP, projectors by Texas Instruments (TXN) to send the image to the screen, which is curved at the ends. The display runs at a resolution of 2,880x900 pixels and is expected to ship in the third quarter. It will sell for around $5,000 to $6,000.

Alienware, the Miami computer company owned by Dell (DELL), showcased the curved monitor during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January and was surprised by the level of attention the display garnered at the show. AlienWare makes high-end computers geared toward so-called gamers, or people who spend a lot of time playing computer video games.

“The market response was overwhelming. It was much greater than we were anticipating,’” said Frank Azor, executive vice president for Alienware’s product and marketing groups.  When Alienware first saw the display Azor said the company was  also “surprised and was completely blown away.”   Part of the company’s job is to bring products to market that will improve gamers’ experience. Alienware provided Ostendo with feedback and advice during the development phase, said Azor.

While the display does have a steep price tag, Azor at Alienware said it will nevertheless appeal to its audience, which already spends a lot for high-end computers.

“The monitor lets you immerse the PC gamers in the PC gaming experience,’’ said Azor. “Every which way you look, you're looking at the game.”

An alternative to a curved display would be special glasses, but Azor said Alienware hasn’t been able to find any that have the quality and response time as Ostendo’s display.  “One thing that qualifies this monitor is its very fast response time,” said Azor.

But gamers aren’t the only people that may want to spend the cash for a curved monitor. NEC Displays Solutions is betting the curved monitor will be a big hit with corporations,  given the quality and response time, and has identified 12 markets to go after, including medical, media, engineering, content development, financial, flight simulation, security and call centers.  

“We have done studies that show wide screens are much better productivity-wise than dual displays,” said Richard Atanus, vice president of engineering, technical and environment services at NEC Display Solutions. “There’s already two or three customers looking at full or half-circle displays.”

Ostendo also thinks there’s more of a market opportunity than gamers. Ostendo said the displays could  be used in things like video production and animation. Daines said Ostendo is talking to Apple (AAPL) to make sure the display works with the computer maker’s applications. Ostendo plans to have a family of curved displays in the market sometime in 2009.

But the price tag, in a sluggish economy, is sure to be a deterrent to wide spread market adoption. All of the companies involved with the curved display said the price will ultimately come down as production picks up.

“The idea is to ramp production,’’ said Azor, at Alienware. When suppliers start seeing the value the product should hit lower price points, he said.