GristyMcFisty used our news submit to tell us that increased competition and greater pressure from
clients to lower costs will result in lower prices for the consumer. Integrated
MPEG-2 chips used in DVD recorders are expected to drop from about US$ 40
currently to below US$ 30 in the second half of 2004 according to sources
at international chip suppliers.
The integrated MPEG-2 solution for DVD recorders combines the functions of a decoder and encoder. While international companies dominate the market, major Taiwanese optical storage IC design firms, including MediaTek and ALi, are expected to join the competition in the second half of 2004, sources said. The international companies, including ESS Technology, Royal Philips Electronics, LSI Logic and Cirrus Logic, are selling MPEG-2 and servo IC chipsets at about US$ 40-45, but expect the prices to drop to about US$ 35 in the first half of next year and to around US$ 30 in the second half, sources said. In addition to rising supply, optical storage drive makers have faced rising pressure to cut production costs as they see rapidly falling average selling prices (ASPs). Lite-On IT, a major Taiwanese optical storage drive maker, has recently priced a DVD recorder at about US$ 299, and many industry observers project market prices for DVD recorders will fall to about US$ 250 in the first half of next year. |
In addition, the article says due to the MPEG-2 challenge from Taiwanese companies, major international suppliers have geared up to offer more advanced products. The companies include Philips, Cirrus Logic and LSI. They may start sampling MPEG-4 chips with a smaller, 0.13-micron process in February and soon after begin volume shipments.
Source: Digi Times
