News
Super Bowl Triggers LCD TV Sales Surge
By Swanni
Washington, D.C. (February 22, 2013) -
This month's Super Bowl helped trigger a 15 percent increase in
LCD TV shipments in January, compared to last year's run-up to
the big game, says research firm IHS.
The company says roughly 2 million LCD TVs were shipped in the
United States in January 2013, compared to 1.8 million in
January 2012. Furthermore, shipments in January 2012 were higher
than they were in January 2011. (While 'shipments' are not the
same as sales, they do reflect the intensity of consumer demand
at retail.)
IHS says the increase interest in LCD sets was prompted by lower
prices, particularly for larger-screen TVs.
“The cost of LCD TVs sized 50-inches and larger has been
plunging since the second half of 2012 as television brands
introduced new models,” said Jusy Hong, senior analyst,
television, for IHS. “This rise in competition helped propel
strong growth for large-sized LCD TV sales during the Super Bowl
sales season in January. Shipments of LCD TVs sized 60-inches
and larger showed particularly strong gains, with their
penetration of the market tripling in January compared to the
same month in 2012.”
IHS said 50-inch and larger LCD TVs accounted for 30 percent of
total shipments in January, up from 19 percent during January
2012. Shipments of sets 60 inches or larger rose 12 percent,
which was a three percent increase from the previous year.
The top LCD TV brands in January were LG, Samsung, Sony and
Vizio, the company said, accounting for more than 50 percent of
overall shipments in the U.S,.
While January shipments warmed up for LCD, Plasma sales went
cold, IHS said.
While large LCD and LED-backlit
TVs are on the rise, sales of plasma sets plunged during the
pre-Super Bowl period. Plasma sales are facing a tough pricing
battle with LCD TVs in the large-sized segment. For 60-inch LCD
TVs, pricing for second-tier brands was actually cheaper than
for first-tier brands’ price for the 60-inch plasma models," the
research firm stated.
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