It'll be some time yet before Blu-ray players can reach the mass appeal and significant market penetration that the DVD player format has; but according to new research, the format will surpass DVD players in revenue by 2013.

According to research firm In-Stat, Blu-ray player shipments will lag slightly behind DVD players' 90 million in 2013. But the higher price tag of the high-definition format will lead to revenue that's four-times as much as standard DVD players.

"In North America, significant price drops of Blu-ray players drove unit shipments to triple in 2009," says Michelle Abraham, In-Stat analyst. "The cost differential between standard definition DVD and Blu-ray is becoming much smaller, and new features such as IP/network connectivity are becoming increasingly important. Blu-ray is finally starting to make significant advances market."

In the U.S., 18% of survey respondents who say they have at least some interest in purchasing a Blu-ray player have not yet done so due to price. Currently, Japan leads in terms of Blu-ray market penetration, while Europe brings in the most revenue for the category. Going forward, network capability will become of increasing importance to consumers who adopt the format: In-Stat says that close to 80 million network-enabled Blu-ray players will ship by 2013.

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