So, despite premature announcements of the death of VRML, it is alive and well in the form of X3D. No other single real-time 3D technology has prevailed as long and continued to evolve despite a steady barrage of (often unfounded) criticism....
Open Standards for Real-Time 3D Communication
A nonprofit organization that develops and maintains the X3D standard--a 3D file format and runtime specification that is open, royalty free and ISO ratified for transmission of 3D data over networks.