A newly leaked Black Friday ad is showing that giant retailer Best Buy will be slashing Blu-ray prices to their lowest ever, even undercutting Target’s recent promotional initiative.
Catalog titles such as The Departed will sell for $7.99 in the high-definition format. New releases, such as Wolverine and Monsters vs Aliens are selling for $9.99. A few more expensive titles, such as the new Gladiator BD, are selling for $12.99, all lower price points than have ever been previously available.
Many DVDs will go on sale for $3.99, such as last year’s blockbuster The Dark Knight.
Additionally, Best Buy will be offering Sony and Samsung BD-Live Blu-ray players for $149, matching Amazon and Wal-Mart. Its own Insignia brand players will retail for $99.
Result for: ray price
According to industry sources in Taiwan, OEM Blu-ray manufacturers have been hit with “seriously stagnant sales” due to Sony, Samsung and Sharp’s decision to drop prices of standalone Blu-ray players to under $200 USD.
The manufacturers began shipping players out in October and November aimed “at the $199 to $299 price range” which became nearly impossible to sell at profit after the bigger brand name companies began selling the players at under $200.
The companies should be okay now however, as brand name Blu-ray player prices have crept up to their average prices before the special holiday cuts.
Digitimes noted that U.S. buyers bought almost exclusively from big name companies such as Samsung and Sony during the holiday season, leaving less reputable OEM brands out to dry.
