Date:20/07/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/bline/catalyst/2006/07/20/stories/2006072000140300.htm

Back `Exponential growth in LCD TV category'

R.Ravikumar

Samsung's Zutshi on LCD, plasma TV market in India.

R. ZUTSHI, Deputy Managing Director, Samsung India

Is the Indian market not mature enough for LCD and plasma TVs? It took a long time to graduate the Indian consumer from conventional TVs to flat screens. So would it be easy to upgrade them to LCD or plasma from flat-screen TVs?

As far as the shift from conventional TVs to flat TVs is concerned, the pattern was similar to what happens whenever a technology is introduced. Since the volumes are small, the pricing is relatively higher and consumer awareness and education in the new technology is low. Once the pricing comes down to a level where it becomes more attractive to a wider consumer base and the consumer is more aware of the benefits of the new technology, the inflexion point is reached and the growth is much faster. Today, against a de-growing conventional TV market, the flat TV market is growing by 47.7 per cent and contributes over 50 per cent of the CTV market. Today, we are witnessing an exponential growth in the LCD TV category and this growth is driven by consumers who already have a large screen flat or conventional TV in their home.

The trend in the market is that high-end or technology-led product categories are doing better in the Indian market and that is the reason we expect better acceptance for the LCD product category in the Indian market.

The growth trends being witnessed in the market for LCDs and our growth (we have grown by over 1,100 per cent in the first six months of the year), clearly indicate that people are willing to spend on LCD TVs.

Samsung is a player both in LCD and plasma TVs. What do you think will be more suitable to the Indian market, taking into account the price factor?

LCD TVs have achieved cost competitiveness in screen sizes up to 40 inches, while plasma TVs are better for screen sizes 42 inches and above. Thus between the two technologies, what is more suitable for the Indian market actually translates into what is the preference of the consumer in terms of screen size and the money they are willing to spend. However, if we look at the global projections for LCD TVs and map them against the Indian market, I can say with a fair degree of confidence that the LCD market will double every year for the next couple of years at least.

Is there a market for projection TV?

The projection TV market is there in India at present but the growth in this category is very clearly overshadowed by the growth in LCD and plasma technologies.

What is the size of the LCD/plasma market in the world and in India?

Last year, the market size for flat panel TVs (LCD and plasma) was 30,000 units. This year, it is expected to grow to two lakh units — 1.5 lakh for LCDs and 0.5 lakh for plasma.

The global LCD market is expected to grow from 42 million (22 per cent contribution) to 111 million (over 50 per cent contribution) by 2010. The global plasma market is expected to grow from 10 million this year to 20 million by 2010. In India, we expect the market to grow to 4-5 lakh units next year.