Audio Video News

I wasn't going to post a story about this until we know more about it, but it's too important to wait. According to several news sources, Pioneer is finalizing plans to stop manufacturing plasma panels and concentrate on assembling plasma TVs. The company is negotiating to acquire panels from Matsushita, Panasonic's parent company. A Pioneer spokesperson said an official statement would be forthcoming this Friday.

Obviously, this news has disturbed many home theater buffs because of its potential effect on the availability and continued advancement of Pioneer's Kuro plasma TVs, which are widely considered to be the best flat panels in the world. The Kuro technology was developed by Pioneer, so it's unknown whether or not this technology will be incorporated into the Panasonic glass that Pioneer will then procure to make finished TVs.

Stay tuned for more details as they become available. It should be a very interesting Friday.