Wal-Mart has denied rumors of placing a substantial order with a Taiwan-based consumer electronics manufacturer, Fuh Yuan, and TDK in China to manufacture $250-299 HD DVD players. "The article... was full of inaccuracies and we had no participation in it. Most of the facts, including the purchase, were untrue," a Wal-Mart spokesman said. Wal-Mart, the world"s largest retailer, could play an important role in determining the success or failure of a particular format.
On Thursday, the following statement appeared on Fuh Yuan"s site: "We are sorry to correct the statement that we have two million HD-DVD players order from Wal-Mart and manufactured by China Great Wall Group. The actuality is that we had not received yet. We are asked to provide the schedule to Wal-Mart and cost to determine the quantity even more than two million, if the cost is good enough and timing is correct. So the capacity is under consideration. Any qualified manufactured base group will be welcome." When asked to comment specifically on Fuh Yuan"s statement, the spokesperson said she could not comment on or disclose Wal-Mart"s internal business with suppliers and orders.
While Wal-Mart denied that any orders had been placed, the company did say that it plans to sell both Blu-ray and HD-DVD components in its stores and online. The spokesperson added: "We expect that as prices decrease and new elements are added in the coming months that consumers will choose which format will dominate, and that could happen by the end of this year."