Laser Shortages to Delay New Blu-ray, HD DVD Players?

[zombie]

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/sh...VD_Players/201

From the article:

The next-gen format war may be cooler than expected this holiday season, as shortages of blue laser diodes could result in shipment delays for new models of Blu-ray and HD DVD players and drives until 2007.

Ouch!

[JTK]

http://www.digitimes.com/systems/a20060828PR206.html

Blu-ray and HD-DVD to freeze competition until 2007 due to laser diode shortage.


"Since manufacturers of blue laser diodes are still unable to improve yield rates, the shortage may result in pushing back the competition between Blu-ray Disc (BD) and HD-DVD optical disc drives in the market to the first quarter of 2007, according to sources at optical disc drive (ODD) manufacturers.

Although several vendors, including Royal Philips Electronics, Hitachi-LG Data
Storage (HLDS), Sony, Matsushita Electric, Lite-On IT and BenQ, already announced BD or HD-DVD drives, only Pioneer and Plextor are currently able to maintain actual shipments, according to the sources. Toshiba may soon join them, with volume shipments planned to kick off in September, the sources added.

Utilizing BD drives in its own PS3 game consoles, Sony suspended shipments of blue laser diodes to other customers, the makers indicated, adding that only Nichia, Sharp and Sanyo continue shipping the diodes. Nichia, which currently holds 80% of the global blue laser diode supply, reported that its yield rate for blue laser diodes reached 30%, according to the makers. However, the actual output still falls behind the demand, the makers said.

According to Michael Gong, general manager of Lite-On IT's optical disc drive business unit, demand visibility for BD and HD-DVD drives remains impressive, but availability of new models may be postponed due to the shortage of blue laser diodes. By the first quarter of next year, the tight supply is expected to ease, he added."

[vick vega]

I don't want to sound like a big conspiracy theory guy......, but this sounds kinda fishy. Maybe they want to drag out this war for some reason. I mean the loser of this format war will lose clout w/buyers who invested in their product for years. I mean it could be so they both don't have to really improve their products in the next few years.

[JTK]

Originally Posted by vick vega

I don't want to sound like a big conspiracy theory guy......, but this sounds kinda fishy

Yes.

[thunderhawk]

Originally Posted by JTK

Yes.

?

[Psiweaver]

definately fishy.

[JTK]

Originally Posted by thunderhawk

?

What? I agreed with the statement that something is fishy about this.

[AV_Integrated]

There is nothing fishy about this at all. This is, no less than, the 4th time I have heard about the diode shortage. Since this is the first year production lines are being put to the test for the new lasers, they must ramp up production to meet expectations.

This is fine for a 'normal' system startup that takes a couple of years to get rolling. But, PS3 and Sony have put a phenomenal strain on the supply. Early on the order was placed for millions of blue lasers and the companies out there must fulfill the order. For some companies, an order to supply parts for PS3 may be the ENTIRE reason that company will exist.

So, the shortage is not new news, and it is not suprising news. It is expected, and the fact that it may limit the players that are on the market early on is not a good thing - it is simply the way things are. Sony was early to the game and had high demands. Others arriving now, must wait in line - which sucks for them. But, unless they want to build their own manufacturing facility, that is what they have to deal with.

[JTK]

Originally Posted by AV_Integrated

There is nothing fishy about this at all. This is, no less than, the 4th time I have heard about the diode shortage. Since this is the first year production lines are being put to the test for the new lasers, they must ramp up production to meet expectations.

This is fine for a 'normal' system startup that takes a couple of years to get rolling. But, PS3 and Sony have put a phenomenal strain on the supply. Early on the order was placed for millions of blue lasers and the companies out there must fulfill the order. For some companies, an order to supply parts for PS3 may be the ENTIRE reason that company will exist.

So, the shortage is not new news, and it is not suprising news. It is expected, and the fact that it may limit the players that are on the market early on is not a good thing - it is simply the way things are. Sony was early to the game and had high demands. Others arriving now, must wait in line - which sucks for them. But, unless they want to build their own manufacturing facility, that is what they have to deal with.

Fair enough.

I just posted the story here to let everyone pick it apart and see what's what.

[ethan]

What I find interesting, is that they say Nichia provides 80% of the blue laser market, yet the story there is that Sony is stopping supplying blue laser to other companies in order to maximize their PS3 offering. But how does that hinder the format war to the point of postponing it ? Nichia is still there aren't they ? Whatever supply Sony was giving, it is very small compared to Nichia. The title of the article doesnt match the content. They are talking purely of the PC Drives manufacturers and imply a strong connection to the stand alone players market, which is weak at best.

Did I miss something important ?

[thunderhawk]

Originally Posted by JTK

What? I agreed with the statement that something is fishy about this.

Sorry. Misinterpreted it.

..

And yeah. It was mentioned before... I'm not surprised.
But... It odd, Toshiba is one of the first to get the lasers 'back'...