LCD TV sales grow nearly 30% in first half of ’11: study

THE TV market in Southeast Asia expanded in the first six months of 2011 compared to the same period last year, with consumers in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam having spent over $2.1 billion on 6.33 million TV sets.

This reflects an overall industry growth of 16% and 11%, respectively, in value and volume terms, according to global leading market research company GfK Asia.

Findings showed that Indonesia grew 46% and 31% in value and volume terms, attributed to the prevalent consumer trend of upgrading from the traditional CRT TV to the newer flat-panel LCD TV. 

While CRT TV in the first half of 2010 accounted for 43% of overall TV value sales, the proportion dropped substantially (13%) this year. 

This switchover trend was also apparent in the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, although CRT TV sales, despite declining, today continue to occupy over a third of each country’s volume share of TV sales.

“The TV industry is a vibrant one -- innovating and evolving constantly and always presenting consumers with new upgrading options be it the latest technology or fresh new features,” said Jasmine Lim, regional account director for consumer electronics at GfK Asia. 

“We are generally seeing an upward growth trending across Southeast Asian markets, particularly in Indonesia and Vietnam, where the value of the TV market registered healthy double-digit growth in the first six months of this year, when compared to the same period last year.

“These developing countries present a wealth of opportunities for TV manufacturers seeking to penetrate further into this region,” Ms. Lim said. She noted, however, that Singapore retailers have completely phased out CRT TVs and expect higher sales in plasma and LCD TVs, both with and without LED backlight.

Smart TV or TV with Web content access is one of the most recent TV technologies which is gaining acceptance in the region. 

In Southeast Asia, sales of Smart TV have been increasing steadily in the first two quarters of the year with unit sales in Q2 growing by 20% over the previous quarter. Overall take-up rate of Smart TV by consumers here in the first six months of the year is 24 out of every 100 TV units sold. 

In terms of acceptance on a country level, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia are leading with Smart TV unit take-up rates of 20%, 14% and 14%.

“Smart TV is relatively new to [the region] and its future success is directly dependent on the Internet penetration rate and Internet speed of each individual market,” Ms. Lim said.