Manufacturing capacity is still increasing and this will make the drives cheaper in the end:

It still remains a question when DVD-ROM will overtake CD-ROM as the main media- and data-reading format. Despite the lower prices and tighter margins that plague the CD-ROM sector, CD-ROM drives are forecast to hold well over 40% of Taiwan?s drive production this year, according to the Market Intelligence Center (MIC).

Per-unit CD-ROM drive contract prices have dipped to as low as US$17, a level that may have hit bottom and left little space for further declines, according to the manufacturers. For DVD-ROM drives, however, they expect price quotes ? currently nearing US$30 ? to further drop to US$25-28 in the fourth quarter.