Global TV market likely to stay flat in 2013

Global demand for TVs is likely to be flat next year following a decline in demand for all types of TV of 4% this year, according to research by NPD DisplaySearch.

According to the company’s latest quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast report, TV sales this year amounted to 237 million.

Large screen TVs continue to do well, according to the research group. Shipments of 50-inch and larger screen sizes are expected to rise 13% in 2013, compared with just 1% growth of 40-49-inch screens and a 2% decline in shipments of 40-inch and smaller size screens.

The company expects that new technologies such as OLED will gain momentum after a delayed start to production, with about 50,000 units expected to be sold in 2013, rising to around nine million by 2016.

Shipments of 4K × 2K LCD TVs are expected to grow from just over 4,000 in 2012 to 154,000 in 2013, and around five million by 2016, mostly in 50-inch and larger sizes.

“Worldwide demand for TVs continues to face pressure from external factors, such as slowing economic growth, high unemployment rates, and the rising household penetration of flat panel TVs,” noted Paul Gagnon, director, North American TV Research at NPD DisplaySearch. “At the same time, internal factors, such as slower cost reductions and a greater focus on profits at the expense of volume, are leading to a lower level of retail price erosion, which is also impacting demand.”