The price will be set by the dealer, a well-known supplier to the MPC community.
My lead engineer suffered a major concussion (oops!) which pushed back our efforts 6 weeks. As of today, we determined the original manufacturer of the LCD chips. They are, indeed, a discontinued part and not made by Epson, Optrex or Sharp as previously assumed.
The next step is to integrate new technology with the old controller code and sprinkle in useful features like a wider viewing angle and a sunlight-readable LED back light.
The new displays will run much cooler due to the LED backlighting and will not suffer from heat related failures. Give your MPC new life - leave it on without worrying about the display!