The Japanese retail volume for both flash-based and HDD-based PMP/MP3 players and personal DVD players hit 639,900 units in 2006, up 21% from 2005. When the major manufacturers switched their focus from MiniDisc (MD) players to compatible players, the Japan PMP market became more diversified. In addition, Japanese PMP manufacturers, such as Sony and Toshiba, are more focused on HDD players. PMP/MP3/PDP player market retail volume is expected to reach 759,700 units by the end of 2007, and to reach 1.49 million units by 2011.

In-Stat believes that music-playing cellphones could only encroach upon the sales of low-end portable MP3 player sales. Products such as the iPhone and the Japanese product Sophia will impact PMP sales growth in Japan in the coming five years, once the price for the Sophia and the iPhone fall to more affordable ranges. In fact, recent primary research from In-Stat shows that 27.1% of total respondents would like to use a multimedia mobile phone as the substitute for a multimedia player, insinuating that multimedia phones could pose an increasingly serious threat to all sectors of the PMP player market.