Blu-ray surpasses 30% of all DVD recorder / player shipments in Japan
by Darren Murph 
posted Oct 23rd 2008 at 10:37AM
We knew Japan was warming to Blu-ray, but apparently those tepid desires have morphed into infernos of passion. According to new statistics loosed by the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA), Blu-ray Disc recorder / player shipments hit a level of 138,000, or around 107 times more than the shipments posted a year ago. Moreover, those shipments accounted for 31% of "overall shipments of DVD equipment on a volume basis." Unsurprisingly, BD equipment -- coupled with flat-panel TVs -- were the two biggest drivers of consumer electronics shipments in Japan this year, with visual equipment shipments rising 8.2% year-over-year. Blu-ray and HDTV: a match made in heaven. Or Tokyo.[Image courtesy of TVSnob]
Filed under: Industry, Blu-ray, Other formats, Players, Recorders
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Anthony @ Oct 23rd 2008 12:40PM
ROCK ON Japan, Now just start bringing some of those Blu-ray recorders to us in the USA!!
3dpenguin @ Oct 23rd 2008 2:48PM
I doubt the CE manufactures would expect much demand for them over here in the US, DVRs have taken over the recordable formats over hear and people who want to record using DVD or Blu-ray use their computers to do so, DVD-Recorders are very limited in use over here a BR-Recorder would be even less used, seeing that the BR-R discs are more costly as a physical media than DVD, for the price of 2 BD-R I can buy nearly 20 DVD-R, which is 80GB worth of storage.
DrXym @ Oct 24th 2008 4:15AM
Most of the Japanese recorders are DVRs too. A HDD for recording shows and then the BD drive for archiving or playing them back. Don't ask me why the Japanese are so enamoured with recordable media but clearly they are.
Brian (the HD guy) @ Oct 26th 2008 2:32PM
@3dpenguin or whatever
"for the price of 2 BD-R I can buy nearly 20 DVD-R, which is 80GB worth of storage."
Well, I don't know where you are gonna keep 80 dvd's (not at my place) never mind the time it takes to record and put them in and out - makes me tired just thinking about it!
why not the LS2LS7? @ Oct 23rd 2008 1:33PM
I don't actually believe this. I'd love it to be true, but I can't think how it can be. Maybe it only counts recorders?
3dpenguin @ Oct 23rd 2008 2:41PM
Sounds like numbers twisting to me, they have no reference to what "on a volume basis" means, and it also doesn't make references to what volumes DVD equipment is shipping and what kind of equipment is being referred to. The problem with comparison between new and old equipment is older equipment will sell less and less over time as demand decreases because to continue to sell the same volumes of a device that device would have to have a point where failure rate equals a large portion of the purchase rate, which doesn't happen.
Wes @ Oct 23rd 2008 3:20PM
Its actually true! Blu-ray adoption is going pretty well in Japan because in Japan, DVDs still cost $25-$40.00 at most rental or retail big box stores. I was shocked at the prices of dvd when I visited Japan. I wanted to show my girlfriend the movie Edward Siccorhands ...spelling? because she loves Johnny Deepe. The darn movie cost me 2500 en or roughly $25.00 and that movie is ...10? years old! They have never really decreased the price on dvds like they have in north america.
So seeing a price tag of $40.00 for blu-ray and seeing the dvd for $35.00, honestly, people aren't as hard pressed to choose the blu-ray in Japan. Its quite a different situation than here where you'll see a price tag of $13.00 on the dvd and seeing $40.00 on the blu-ray or even $25.00 on amazon.
benny boy @ Oct 23rd 2008 3:14PM
Hey, those Japanese are a strange lot.
But seriously, you can't judge the Japanese people with Western standards in mind. They have a completely different culture out there that embraces the best new technologies. They also like to have physical items instead of digital downloads/recordings. That's why downloadable games haven't really taken off over there.
Rob @ Oct 23rd 2008 3:33PM
@ Wes:
No offense but maybe you need to shop a bit more carefully while in Japan. If you go to Tower Records, or similar shops, you'll be paying those prices. That's everywhere in the world. I bought plenty of DVDs around Japan, including new releases, for the same price found here in the USA. And there are plenty of "used/like new" stores around town. "Hard Off" is one of them. Yes, it does exist and it's named "Hard Off." If you were out to impress with your wealth, that's fine. But, there are plenty of places to shop and get great prices. Anyone that pays airport stores' prices deserves to be ripped off.
Japan is no different from the U.S. If you want to find deals, you don't go to the stores located in tourists' areas. One thing I loved about shopping in Japan is that the price on the label is not the final price. You can get them to lower it if you persist enough. In my experience, when it comes to negotiating, Japanese shop owners are not as flexible as the Chinese. But, you can get a few yens off.
Back to the main topic, these numbers seem a bit manipulated in my eyes. I'd go along with the argument that BD is gaining. But, not by that much.
Wes @ Oct 23rd 2008 10:50PM
Yes, you can buy used discs form Hard Off which at the Matusdo JR station is right across form the Tetsuya that sells dvds but there's certain concerns that always arise when buying used goods. My thats cheap? is it good quality? did the previous owner take care of the discs? are there scratches? will it be playable in the dvd player when I take it home? or do I want to buy a new one that I know will work.
Regardless, even the used dvds are much more expensive than used dvds in North America. Used DVDs in North America can easily be 4-5 dollars. In Japan, used dvds are as expensive as new dvds here.
Rob @ Oct 23rd 2008 2:50PM
"Shipped Units" and "Sold Units" are two different things. I have always praised Blu-ray for its large storage capacity potential. But, over passing dvd recorders/players by that much sounds a bit "too optimistic" in these crappy times. The skeptic in me thinks that this nothing more than numbers manipulation backed by the BDA. But, what do I know, I haven't been in Tokyo in over four years. But, even Japan has to be feeling the pinch of high cost of BD adoption.
Wes @ Oct 23rd 2008 10:51PM
BTW, the hard off didn't have edward sissorhands to boot :P. I tried checking there first when I found out that the dvd was so damn expensive at Tetsuya...and reluctantly came back to buy it there anyways.