July 9 - 10:20am EDT   VIZIO this morning earned a reprieve from US Customs that cleared its current TV line of possible patent infringements that might have blocked their sale in the US. The government agency made the ruling four months after the US Patent and Trademark Office rejected a patent from Japanese company Funai, which had hoped to use the patent to block US-based VIZIO's sets from reaching stores. Funai is expected to appeal, though VIZIO equally expects to win. [full story]

May 21 - 1:25pm EDT   the second time this year, flat panel HDTV maker Vizio has sued competitor Funai. Made official on Wednesday, the Vizio lawsuit is seeking an injunction of the sales of the offending Funai hardware in the US and unspecified monetary damages, arguing Funai has infringed on a number of patents held by Vizio related to manufacturing, importing and distribution of HDTVs. Vizio is seeking "millions in damages" for profits from the past sales of infringing products from Funai. [full story]

November 7 - 5:20pm EST   As part of a price drop campaign it is calling Operation Main Street, Walmart on Thursday announced it will cut back prices of many popular products over the next seven weeks, in time for the holidays. The more noteworthy items include a Magnavox Blu-ray player, the NB500MG9, priced at $198, down from its regular price of $229. It is capable of upconverting standard DVD movies and will support Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound formats. A 2GB Sony Walkman MP3 player will be priced at $49. [full story]

May 12 - 5:00pm EDT   The Magnavox and Sylvania brands are already selling a Blu-ray player that breaks past the $300 price range, according to tips passed along by Blu-ray.com forum members. Made by Japanese company Funai, the Magnavox NB500MG9 and Sylvania NB500SL9 have both been found selling at Wal-Mart stores for $298, or a full $100 less than Sony's PlayStation 3 and other more common players. [full story]