Sony will launch 3D TVs worldwide in June

Tokyo: Sony Corp will launch 3D televisions in June, entering an increasingly crowded market that is betting the revolutionary TV will become the next hot product in the electronics industry.

The maker of Bravia flat TVs hopes 3D models will make up 10 per cent of more than 25 million LCD TVs it aims to sell in the next financial year.

Sony's Chief Executive Howard Stringer holds high hopes of a shift to 3D as it will likely give a boost to many of its business operations, which range from TVs, digital cameras and Blu-ray DVD players to video games.

"Sony is a formidable competitor to Samsung because it is leading the game industry. It will likely be ardent game players who will first buy 3D TVs as an early adopter," said Alex Oh, an analyst at Hanwha Securities in Seoul.

Behind industry leader Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, Sony is vying with LG Electronics Inc for the position as the world's No 2 flat TV maker. The maker of the PlayStation 3 game console plans to release 3D game software around June in time for TV launch.

Last month, Samsung started offering 3D TVs in South Korea and said it would launch them globally this month with the aim of selling at least 2 million 3D TVs this year.

Panasonic Corp, the fourth-largest, plans to launch its 3D TVs in the US today and says it will cooperate with top US electronics retailer Best Buy Co in promoting them.

Many TV makers hope the new technology will be as big a boost for the industry as the transition to colour TVs from black and white.

However, some analysts noted many consumers have only just unboxed new high-definition TV screens, making them unwilling to spend on another upgrade any time soon.

Global demand

Sony will begin selling 3D TVs in Japan on June 10 and plans to launch overseas around the same time.

The electronics and entertainment conglomerate expects a model with a 46-inch screen to sell for 350,000 yen (Dh14,223) including two pairs of 3D glasses, a 52 per cent premium over its latest regular LCD TV with a comparable screen size.

The sci-fi blockbuster Avatar and other recent titles have sparked massive interest in 3D movies, and electronics makers are now rushing to get flat panel TVs with three-dimensional visual effects to the market.

Global demand for 3D TVs will likely reach 15.6 million units in 2013 from an estimated 1.2 million units this year, according to research firm DisplaySearch.