The European HD DVD Promotion Group has announced that Toshiba has taken a leading share of the European market for standalone high definition players.
According to GfK, who carried out the research, HD DVD's share of the market averaged 74% from January to May 2007, and from the beginning of 2006 to the end of May 2007 it averaged 71%.
The figures showed that sales of Toshiba's HD-E1 player grew by 72% in May.
Not surprisingly, these figures set off a chain of reactions from HD DVD supporters.
Eddie Cunningham, Chairman of the European HD DVD Promotional Group, said that it showed that European consumers recognised that HD DVD delivered the most engaging titles and experiences.
Steve Nickerson, Senior Vice President, High Definition Media at Warner Bros, made the point that the standalone player figures were more significant for driving movie sales, because anyone who bought one was solely interested in watching movies, as opposed to owners of games consoles with high definition drives.
Finally, Olivier Van Wynendaele, Toshiba Spokesperson for the European HD DVD Promotion Group, said that there would be 300 unique HD DVD titles available by the end of the year, with over 1,000 available worldwide.
Related posts
Sony announce European Blu-ray boom after PS3 release
HD DVD claim more disc titles than Blu-ray in Q2
European Commission probe HD format practices
From: Sony to double BRAVIA LCD TV production for growing European demand