Toshiba Cuts HD-DVD Player Prices Up to 50% – Smart Move or Delaying the Inevitable?
Much has been made of the HD-DVD versus Blu-Ray war in the past few weeks, with Blu-Ray being all but declared the winner – due mostly to the decision by Warner to go exclusively into the Blu-Ray camp. But, as in any war of this sort, Blu-Ray can’t quite declare victory yet as CNET is reporting serious price drops on Toshiba’s HD-DVD players that may prolong this war even more. The baseline player, the HD-A3 is now $149.99 while the HD-A30 goes for $199.99. The top-end player, that supports full 1080p output, is now $200 cheaper at $299.99. But are these price drops an act of desperation to delay the inevitable, or a smart move?
While most people have all but written off HD-DVD, this move – although unlikely to succeed – is a smart one. Consumers, in particular, will benefit from this move as it forces the Blu-Ray camp to play hardball again and aggressively price their players back into the same price range as HD-DVD. But what about the ramifications for Toshiba? Well, if Toshiba can garner a large enough install-base through these price drops, they can probably convince the movie studios that haven’t jumped to stay on-board. If Toshiba can prolong the exodus of studios long enough, it might be able to persuade studios back into it’s camp. While the industry does want a unified standard, they also want to make money. If HD-DVD can prove that they are where consumers will butter their bread, the studios will follow suit.
Will it work? My guess is no, but it will certainly delay the war even more. If Toshiba was able to get an HD-DVD player under the $100 line, I think the game would be slightly different as there’s not a single Blu-Ray player near that price point. All of that said, consumers will probably end up waiting this out, which will force Sony and its partners into another price war with HD-DVD products.
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