In case you aren’t already aware, Pioneer’s KURO range of Plasma TVs are breathtakingly good and anyone in their right mind will be waiting with bated breath in anticipation of the new models shown off at CES. Sadly, if the latest rumours are to be believed, those panels may never see the light of day as Pioneer is apparently considering stopping production and will instead outsource from other manufacturers.
The official line is that the company is ‘reviewing’ its plasma business; worrying since the last time we heard this phrase used was Toshiba ‘reviewing’ its HD DVD involvement – and we all know how that turned out. If sources, confirmed by Reuters, are to be believed Matsushita will be supplying Pioneer’s Plasma panels in the future.
As yet no official word is forthcoming, but it is expected that Pioneer will announce something at CeBIT. Hopefully if the company is going to stop making panels itself it will be allowing other companies access to the technology it has developed. If that happens we could see a much larger range of manufacturers offering KURO quality TVs, which in turn could lead to some more competitive pricing which is never a bad thing.
Source: Press release
