Even before the recession, both warranty and long-term product support were issues worthy of consideration. How many receivers and DVD players have exhibited problems that were "fixed" in a subsequent generation while the original owners were left high and dry? How many "card cage" style surround processors spent years in production without getting any new cards offered? How many companies have shut down (M&K comes to mind as a recent example)?

You mention that possibly 50% of the supply chain companies in your industry are expected to fail during this recession. That magnitude of loss across the entire world economy would be pretty devastating (think of the associated unemployment rate it would suggest) so I think it's unrealistic to expect the same for other industries. Each industry will be affected differently. Some of the large players are clearly struggling - Sony reported large losses last year and expects similar losses over the next year, and Pioneer has basically withdrawn from home electronics to focus on car audio/video - but smaller companies like Outlaw are radically different business entities.

I've always felt that major purchases (which would include a lot of the pieces of gear we use in our home theaters) need to be informed decisions, and the company's ability to support your purchase over the life of the product is an important part of that process.