Target plans to carry only Blu-ray high definition DVD players
through the holiday shopping season, a move that boosts the
Sony-backed technology and may deal a blow to rival HD-DVD.
In a statement on Thursday, Sony said that Target will exclusively
carry Blu-ray players "at least through the holiday season" and will
also expand its inventory of Blu-ray discs.
The move begins in October with Target's sale and promotion of Sony's
BDP-S300 unit, which sells for about $500.
It was the second major retailer in as many months to throw its
weight behind Blu-ray in the industrywide standards war. Blockbuster,
the largest U.S. provider of home movie entertainment, in June set
plans to line its shelves with Blu-ray DVDs, saying that Blu-ray
rentals are "significantly outpacing HD DVD rentals."
Earlier this month, the HD DVD camp said its stand-alone video
players have outsold rival Blu-ray players by a three-to-one margin
in Europe's main markets so far this year.