Originally posted by Cannikin 3rd party presence is definitely very weak in the US. I can tell that Sony is spending a ton of money in the US to try to force a retail presence for their DSLRs. Most of the camera and electronic stores I've been through, both big and small, have a shelf dedicated to Sony, but I can't imagine that it's anything but a waste of money for them, seeing as most people skip it over and head straight to the Canikon shelf, even if the salesperson tries to push the Sonys.
Other than them, there is basically no 3rd party presence in big box stores in the US like Best Buy. Pentax doesn't have that kind of money to burn like Sony. Olympus Micro 4/3 also show up sometimes, but no DSLRs. The Tall's Camera in the mall across the street from me used to carry some Pentax lenses, but they're all gone now. One of the salespeople there told me they like Pentax cameras, but it's all dictated by the chain. The big chains just don't want them, because they don't see them as ready source of guaranteed revenue.
Only pseudo-warehouse type stores like Fry's give fair share to 3rd parties (and not just in cameras). They carry a full range of Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Olympus and Sony DSLRs all on the same shelf next to each other. And they're arranged from high end to low, not by brand (that is, the K-7 sits next to the 7D/50D and the K-x sits next to the Rebels).
I hate to act the part of the pedant, but you are using the term third party incorrectly.
Pentax is not a third party company.
Sigma is a third party company.
Tamron is a third party company.
Zeiss has morphed into a third party company.
Anyway, I'm also in Regina, and on Thursday I had the opportunity to test drive the 645D and I bought my K5, though through a bit of a bodge, didn't actually get it until Friday morning (not Don's Photos' fault, another customer grabbed my bagged K5 along with her own purchase and didn't return it to the store until the next day).