Ritek is ready to expand its production capacity of blank DVD-R/+R discs this year, with the pace hinging on market conditions, according DigiTimes.com. Ritek expanded its monthly DVD-R/+R disc capacity to 20 million discs at the end of 2003, Yeh said. Although global DVD demand is growing, Taiwanese makers are expanding their capacity aggressively and price competition is threatening.

To cope with the pressure of price competition, Ritek will differentiate its DVD discs by high speed and certification by OEM clients. The company has begun delivering small volumes of 8x DVD-R/+R discs, which now account for 10-20% of its total DVD disc shipments. The proportion is expected to rise rapidly at the beginning of the third quarter.

In addition, Ritek will keep focusing on OEM production for main international brands. More than 80% of Ritek’s DVD disc output is for OEM clients and the remainder for large international retail chains such as hypermarkets. The OEM price, because of higher quality requirements, is higher and more stable than quotations for small Taiwanese makers in the copy market, according to Ritek officials.

Ritek will upgrade the speed of its DVD-R/+R discs, offering 12x discs next quarter and 16x discs in the second half of this year.