Sony Next Gen DVD Recorder Coming Dec.

Sony's stock fell 2.75 percent to a 9 month low, hurt by investment bank Goldman Sachs cutting its earnings estimates and downgrading its rating to "neutral" from "buy."

At stake is not just dominance in the next generation DVD hardware and software markets, but Sony's reputation as a top class manufacturer with the ability to deliver quality products to the market on time.

Sony, whose strong brand image once allowed it to charge a hefty premium for its products, has been hit hard by a series of setbacks in recent months such as recalls of more than seven million Sony made batteries by PC makers and a delay in the highly anticipated launch of its PlayStation 3 in Europe.

The Tokyo based company, whose epoch making Walkman music players have long lost their leading position to Apple Computer Inc's iPod, needs to ensure a smooth launch of the advanced recorders to help regain consumer confidence in its technological prowess.

"We consider the Blu ray recorder a core product for people in the living room to enjoy high definition broadcasting, high definition photos and high definition movies," Sony Senior Vice President Kiyoshi Nishitani told reporters.

Electronics companies such as Sony and Matsushita, the maker of Panasonic brand products, are promoting the Blu ray format as the next generation optical disc standard, while Toshiba Corp. is a leading proponent of the rival HD DVD technology.

At the core of both formats are blue lasers, which have a shorter wavelength than the red lasers used in current DVD equipment, allowing discs to store data at the higher densities needed for high definition movies and television.

Sony expects a model with a 500 gigabyte (GB) hard disk drive, which will hit store shelves on December 8, to sell for 300,000 yen, and a version with a 250 GB hard drive to come with a price tag of 250,000 yen.

The latter will go on sale on December 16.