This may signal the eventual death of plasma, as LCD screens get larger and cheaper.

The ad has no indication of the death of "Plasma". It simply says Pioneer outsourcing its Plasma panel to save cost. Let's not jump to conclusion; Plasma is not HD format to be produced only by one manufacturer. Many companies producing Plasma pane, therefore they can't all go broke...

The demand for plasma has not even approached the numbers needed to make it profitable at LCD prices. People buy whatever is cheaper, and plasma ain't it. If there was money to be made making plasma, Pioneer wouldn't be dumping it.

Well Pioneer chose to go the 'Gucci' route, a big mistake it seems in this WALL*MART day and age. But for those who watch movies, Pioneer and Panasonic plasmas are still the King of the hill. Panasonic plasmas are pretty competitively priced these days and every year get better. One should also note that in Consumer Reports December Reliability ratings (75,000 respondents) Panasonic plasmas were found to be some of the most reliable TVs ever made, only 2% reported problems (compare that to DLP's which were in the 15% range).

Last month Home Theater Magazine did a multi format comparison (movies). All but the screens were covered. At the end the final showdown was between Pioneer and Panasonic (chosen by every reviewer) with next, a Sony, pulling up a distant third.

It's a shame that folks buy into all the LCD hype, and how LCDs get better every year... forgetting that so do plasmas. But for those who enjoy watching movies, the lag free, inky black almost 3D quality that plasma (Pioneer and Panasonic) provides is the only choice.