Manufacturers Still Hesitant Towards Blu-ray

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Manufacturers Still Hesitant Towards Blu-ray
Blu-ray may have won the next-gen movie format war, but some manufacturers are still somewhat leery of increasing their investment in the business and remain unsure of its long-term prospects.
Posted by James Brightman on Monday, March 24, 2008


With HD DVD defeated one might think that electronics manufacturers would get behind the victorious Blu-ray format in full force. That doesn't seem to be the case, however, according to a report in The Korea Times. South Korea, home to major electronics companies such as Samsung and LG, is unlikely to see any accelerated adoption of the new high definition format, the report said.

"Since 2005, we have been releasing Blu-ray products but we are not considering sharpening the business for the time being despite its success in the format war," one Samsung spokesperson said. Samsung said it's still conducting much market research to see what the best strategy would be for their business.

Another Samsung official added, "With the format war ending earlier than expected, Blu-ray manufacturers are unlikely to increase their investment in parts suppliers due to fears over lower profits."

LG seems equally cautious about throwing big support behind Blu-ray at the moment, partially because many believe high definition video on the web will become the dominant "format," making the Blu-ray victory somewhat inconsequential.

"Globally, the potential market for Blu-ray discs is very lucrative. Consumers will spend $1.1 billion on HD discs this year compared with some $300 million last year. However, the business is still in its infancy due to high prices and the rapid penetration of the high-speed Internet," an LG official said, adding, "We will keep our current wait-and-see attitude toward the sector as our company isn't quite sure about the prospects."