New Competitors Continue to Enter Flat Panel TV Market
Plunging prices and heightened competition have done little to dampen manufacturers’ enthusiasm for seeking to add new flat panel brands at retail. Haier and Hyundai are making a renewed push, and Sanyo -- flush from the infusion of $2.58 billion from the sale of preferred shares to Goldman Sachs and others (CED Feb 27 p9) -- forged a joint venture with Quanta Computer.
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Haier’s return to CE was marked by its hiring Electronics Vp-Gen. Abe Grinberg and National Sales & Mktg. Dir. Al Levene, who are charged with shepherding the brand to retail. While Haier initially tested the CE market with flat screen CRT-based sets in 2002, it scrapped the plans to return focus to its appliance business. It has since quietly rolled out a line of 42W-46W plasma TVs as well as 15-40” LCD TVs. It also demonstrated a wireless 37W LCD TV last year featuring an ultra wideband (UWB) chipset designed by Freescale Semiconductor.
Similarly, Hyundai is seeking to emerge from the shadows to build on the retail distribution it has gained in LCD PC monitors and TVs. Exec. Sales & Mktg. Vp Peter Hong joined Hyundai’s U.S. operations in Jan. from the company’s S. Korea hq to work with COO Steve Ahn in developing a line of products featuring a common design. The results were shown at the NATM Buying Corp. meeting in Hollywood, Fla. last week, where Hyundai demonstrated 26W ($799), 32W ($1,099), 37W and 40W ($1,899), all featuring ATSC tuners and 1,366x766 resolution and 500 candelas. It also has 42W and 50W plasma TVs that use Samsung panels. Hyundai is assembling sets at factories in S. Korea and China, the latter dedicated to smaller screen sizes, Ahn said.
Hyundai is positioning itself as a 3rd-tier supplier with a tier one design that can hit lower prices, Ahn said. But NATM dealers we canvassed said while they were impressed by the TV design, the prices need to be readjusted since many are the same as those offered by top-tier suppliers. Hyundai has sold flat panel TVs through retail in the past but with a less focused approach, Hong said. Walmart.com on Mon. was promoting its 32W LCD, 50W and 60W plasma TVs at $899, $2,999 and $7,642, respectively.
Sanyo officials in the U.S. weren’t immediately available for comment on Mon. regarding the implications of the Quanta joint venture, which merges the companies’ flat panel TV operations. The joint venture will source panels from a separate division, Quanta Display, which has a manufacturing facility in Taiwan. Earlier this year, Sanyo unveiled its HD Pro line of LCD-based rear projection and flat panel TVs, which will target independent dealers (CED Feb 27 p3).
In connection with the new venture, Sanyo said it will sharply curb production of CRT-based TVs in seeking to improve the profitability of its AV, information and communication divisions. As a result of move, Sanyo’s CRT TV assembly plant in Forrest City, Ark. will gradually be phased out, while those in the U.K. and Mexico are converted to handle LCDs, Sanyo officials said. Sanyo Mfg. Co., which has been assembling 13-36” sets in Forrest City for 30 years, at one time counted Sears as a minority investor (25%). Sears sold it stake back to Sanyo in 1987. Sanyo spent $10 million in 1995 to expand annual capacity at plants in Forrest City and Tijuana to 2.3 million units from 1.7-1.8 million. Sanyo, which is major TV supplier to Wal-Mart, will keep some CRT operations, but limit sales to China, India and Russia, company officials said.
Meanwhile, Sharp said Mon. it will invest $150 million to expand production at a factory in Kameyama, Japan with a focus on large-screen LCDs. The capacity of the plant will increase to 60,000 glass substrates per month from 51,000. The Kameyama facility started production in 2004. A 2nd factory will open there in Oct. using 8th-generation production that will feature 2.1 x 2.4 m glass substrates. As Sharp increasingly focuses production on larger sizes, it’s moving smaller panels to contract manufacturers. Quanta Display recently started delivery of 26W and 32W LCDs to Sharp and expects shipments to reach one million units this year, Digitimes reported.
Newly merged Syntax-Brillian expanded its supply pact for Olevia brand TVs with LG.Philips LCD to include 20”, 23” and 47” screen sizes. Syntax originally signed an agreement with LG.Philips in Feb. 2005, starting with 32W, 37W and 42W sizes, but with a goal of adding others (CED Feb 28/05 p4)