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OZ TV Market Slumps 2014 World Cup Could Pull It Up

By David Richards| 17 Mar 2014

Display, Industry


	According to new research the market is witnessing a rare deceleration in the LCD TV market according to IHS as global shipment of TV’s fall from 238.3 million in 2012 to 225.1 million units in 2013. It was the second straight year of contraction after a 7% loss in 2012, in 2011 the market surged 11%. “The global TV market continues to be in transition following a golden period of tremendous growth from 2009-2011,” said Jusy Hong, principal analyst for consumer devices at IHS. “TV shipments were down again in 2013 just like in 2012, but an unusual development was the slow market in Asia-Pacific which until recently was among the brighter spots for the industry.” Adding to the market’s woes, Hong added, cash-strapped consumers in North America and Western Europe showed little appetite to buy new TVs, especially as these territories are nearly saturated from flat-panel sets during the last major upgrade of the growth years, said IHS. In Asia-Pacific where Australia is the biggest market LCD TV shipments in 2013 amounted to 23.8 million, down from 25.4 million in 2012. It also been revealed that most major brands are eliminating cheap TV’s from their range because of what IHS research describes as vanishing profit margins. With LED sets still beyond the reach of many, TV demand in Asia-Pacific plummeted in 2013 and continues to remain on a holding pattern, even as consumers hope for prices to come down, Hong noted. Despite the sobering numbers for 2013, worldwide TV shipments are projected to improve in Australia this year as vendors roll out new 4K and OLED TV’s and consumers move to buy a new large TV in time for the 2014 Soccer World Cup in Brazil. IHS said that Worldwide TV shipment totals will also start climbing in 2014 because of new AMOLED sets entering the market, making their appearance at retail in perceptible volume for the first time. Featuring thinner profiles and higher contrast ratios than the current crop of LED-backlit LCD TVs, OLED TVs will see shipments grow from an initial low starting base to some 8.1 million units by 2018.

About Post Author

David Richards has been writing about technology for more than 30 years. A former Fleet Street journalist, he wrote the Award Winning Series on the Federated Ships Painters + Dockers Union for the Bulletin that led to a Royal Commission. He is also a Logie Winner for Outstanding Contribution To TV Journalism with a story called The Werribee Affair. In 1997, he built the largest Australian technology media company and prior to that the third largest PR company that became the foundation company for Ogilvy PR. Today he writes about technology and the impact on both business and consumers.