Panasonic offers $600 Blu-ray player
Stand-alone set-top unit comes bundled with five movies
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 5/15/2007
MAY 15 | Panasonic is making available a cheaper $599.99 priced Blu-ray player.
The DMP-BD10A represents the second announced player, after Sony’s upcoming summer model, to carry a $599 price tag, which is the lowest price for a stand-alone Blu-ray player.
Best Buy will be the first retail chain to carry Panasonic’s new line at the end of May, early June time frame. The manufacturer will later roll the players out to other retailers.
Toshiba recently cut the price of its rival HD-A2 HD DVD stand-alone player to $399. The new Panasonic Blu-ray player comes bundled with five Blu-ray discs: Buena Vista Worldwide Home Entertainment’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and sequel Dead Man’s Chest, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment’s The Transporter and Fantastic Four and Lionsgate’s Crash.Other Blu-ray players, including Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3, came bundled with only one title.
Panasonic’s first player debuted last fall at a price point near $1,300.
In addition to playing Blu-ray discs, the new Panasonic player plays standard-definition DVDs and CDs.
“Panasonic is deeply committed to the success of Blu-ray,” said Gene Kelsey, VP of Panasonic’s entertainment group. “High-definition entertainment is a truly unique experience and nothing powers the [high-def] experience like Blu-ray. With that in mind, we feel strongly about providing the ultimate high-definition entertainment to the consumer and are thrilled to offer five Blu-ray mega hits with the purchase of the BD10A.”
