Toshiba plans to stay away from Blu-ray

Toshiba has "no plans" to develop Blu-ray players after losing the high-definition format war to Sony, according to Olivier Van Wynendaele, Toshiba's deputy general manager of HD-DVD in Europe.

Speaking at the unveilling of the company's new products, Mr Van Wynendaele said that Toshiba had not yet made a decision regarding its future strategy in high-definition discs, but insisted that "the mass market opportunity for HD remains untapped."

The gap left by HD-DVD in Toshiba's product line-up for 2008 means the company will fall back on its core businesses of laptop PCs, LCD televisions and DVD players, all of which continue to sell well. New models in all categories should start to filter into UK stores by early March.

Nigel Kendall