Competition heating up among Blu-ray player manufacturers
One commonly cited point in the format war is hardware support, where Toshiba is prettymuch the sole HD DVD player manufacturer and Blu-ray has a number of playerbrands available. Certainly, a lack of brand diversity isn't great news for any format. But looking at the numbers from DisplaySearch, team blue isn't exactly a "rainbow coalition" either, with Sony and Samsung accounting for 92% of the BD player market. Add in Panasonic for another 5% and there's precious little left being contributed by other manufacturers. Expect to see more competition between these players moving forward -- we've already seen some pretty aggressive pricing, and where one manufacturer goes, others must follow. Whether the price drop in BD players is sparked from within the camp or from elsewhere, consumers will win out!
