Sales of $1.5 Billion for DVD Recorder/Writers and Media in 3Q09

DVD recordable technology registered sales of $1.5 billion in the third quarter of 2009, a change of -10%, according to the report DVD Tracker from the Santa Clara Consulting Group.  

This sales figure includes two DVD recorder segments–DVD writers (attached to PCs) and DVD video recorders (consumer devices attached to televisions), as well as complementary media. Revenue was influenced by an increase in writer unit sales in Asia, largely relating to growth in the China PC market, and by decreases in unit sales in both media and in the recorder markets. DVD recorder sales represented 85% of revenue, with media supporting the balance.   
 
The writer segment registered a -3% change in unit sales during the quarter influenced by the economy and slower sales of personal computers.  Branded DVD writers decreased in volume in the third quarter of 2009 and represented 13% of the market. PC-OEM sales increased modestly during the quarter, influenced by growth in the notebook computer segment.
 
Slim writers represented 69% of the unit sales in Q3, with half-high writers making up the balance. Most manufacturers now include RAM (SuperMulti) in their multi- function writers; this segment now accounts for 86% of the market, with dual writers (±) accounting for most of the balance. The SuperMulti devices allow wide-scale compatibility with all media formats and are widely accepted in the PC-OEM and branded segments of the market.
 
The Asia/Pacific market represented the largest market for writer sales with 52%, influenced by OEMs that assemble PC drives in this region. This next largest market was the Americas, with 20%; Europe, with 17%; and Japan, with 12%.   
 
Five primary types of media are sold into the DVD-recordable market: DVD-RW, DVD-R, DVD-RAM, DVD+RW, and DVD+R. These products combined represented revenues of $234 million in Q3, with the DVD R segment (DVD+R and DVD-R) representing 96% of disc sales.   
 
The Americas represented the largest market for media sales with 39%, followed by Europe with 28%; Japan, with 18% and Asia/Pacific, with 15%. Blu-ray recordable media is a minor factor in the market but will likely offer better margins and could help the overall profitability of the DVD disc business in the future.