Manufacture

Manufacture

As of 2002^[update] the largest producer of DVD players is China; in 2002 they produced 30 million players, more than 70% of the world output. These producers have to pay US$15-$20 per player in license fees, to the patent holders of the DVD technology (Sony, Philips, Toshiba and Time Warner) as well as for MPEG-2 licenses.^[1] To avoid these fees, China has developed the Enhanced Versatile Disc standard as an intended successor of DVD; as of 2004^[update], EVD players were only being sold in China.

History

The first DVD players were introduced in Japan in November 1996, and DVD players were first available in the United States in March 1997

Successors

There are successors to the DVD player: the HD DVD player and the Blu-ray Disc player. On February 19, 2008, Toshiba announced it would cease production on all HD DVD products ultimately naming Blu-ray players the successor to DVD players.