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TOKYO — Next-generation DVDs are catching on with Japanese consumers, with sales picking up sharply at the end of 2007 and the Blu-Ray format blowing away the rival HD-DVD platform, new figures show.
In a replay of the VHS-Betamax battle in video cassette tapes in the late 1970s, two different DVD formats are hitting the market offering cinematic quality images and interactive entertainment — but at a significantly higher price than traditional DVDs.
A major study of 2,300 electronic stores across Japan found that consumers were increasingly buying the next-generation DVD recorders.
The proportion of DVD recorders sold that were next-generation rose from 6.1% in October to around 20% in November and December, said the study by Japan's Business Computer News think tank.
Due to the price difference, next-generation DVDs made up a lucrative 35% of the total value of DVD recorder sales in the last two months of 2007, it said.
Blu-Ray, the format created by Sony Corp, accounted for a crushing 90% of next-generation DVD recorder sales in the three-month period, the study said.
Blu-Ray is used in Sony's PlayStation 3 video-game machine, but the study only looked at living-room DVD recorders.
Three Sony models were the top-selling next-generation DVD recorders, with the electronics giant accounting for some 60% of total sales in the sector.
Panasonic maker Matsushita Electric Industrial Co took 27% of sales, with Sharp Corp coming in third at nearly 10%. Both Matsushita and Sharp support Blu-Ray.
Toshiba Corp, the main supporter of HD-DVD, enjoyed only 4% of the sales, the study said.
