The oligopoly of the top 4 makers of HDD-DVD recorder and their market share

The best selling line of HDD-DVD recorders are entry models with 200GB to 300GB HDD. Especially popular are the “DV-AC52” from SHARP and the “DMR-XP11” from Panasonic. On the other hand, the 500GB HDD models are also a popular line. The 500GB to 600GB HDD size may become the standard for double digital tuner models. We will explore the market movement of the last year.

SHARP, Panasonic and two other makers possess 90% of the market share

According to “BCN Ranking,” SHARP received the top sales share of the HDD-DVD market with the brand power of their LCD TV “AQUOS” series. They had a lead of 2.8% over Panasonic, which came in second with 29.9% market share. SHARP recently launched their new products in March and April, but the latest model will come out this August. The synchronizing function1 “AQUOS fami-link” received positive feedback from consumers, which helped them maintain their recorder sales momentum from last year.

Panasonic also introduced their new spring products with synchronizing function “VIERA Link.” Behind the top two makers are TOSHIBA in third place with 16.5% of market share and SONY in fourth place with 16.3% market share. After April, the four makers held over 90% of the market share and outsold other makers. They are now waiting to see the penetration of the next generation DVD market and the reviews of the limitation number for content copying.

Dual recording function is needed if you want to watch lots of TV programs

With the end of analogue broadcasting in July of 2011, DVD recorders with analogue tuners have almost disappeared from the stores. In January, 22% of HD-DVD recorders were analogue models, but this ratio is gradually decreasing. In February, the availability of these models decreased to 14.6%, then to 5.6% in March and finally down to 2.9% in June. Now, digital broadcasting tuner is the standard for HD-DVD recorders.

On the other hand, the ratio of “double tuner2” recorder models with built-in digital tuner was also below its peak level of 54.3% in September 2006. Single recording models made a turnaround this January and now has a 10% lead over double tuner model.

Surely the recent trend is with single tuner models. However, if consumers want to record many TV programs at the same time, they are better off buying double tuner models.

Consumer balance with HDD size

One more point to consider is the size of HDD. The range of HDD sizes vary all the way from 160GB to 1TB in the digital tuner models. When we separate them by size, the 500GB models have increased since March 2007. This ratio is now at 20% to 30% during the last three months.

When we look at the data based on HDD size, the 500GB models continue to increase whereas the 1TB models, which have the largest HDD size, remains flat. People who make a point of recording function recognize 500GB as a suitable size of HDD.