Panasonic has introduced "Battery Safety Firmware" for many of its cameras - basically disallowing use of any 3rd party batteries (in the name of safety).
Important Notice for imitation battery packs | Digital AV | Consumer Products | Support | Panasonic Global
I am sure Pentax and others would be watching closely.
Would this be the new trend? Would Pentax and others follow suit?
Admittedly, some 3rd party batteries, especially some of those $5 no name ones are very poorly made (and I have written posts in other forums to warn users about this). OTOH, there are some which are just as good as OEM. And without 3rd party options to keep the OEM price in check, they may incline to charge even more.