Dubai: Retailers are seeing an increase in big screen-size television sales as the world is gearing up for the 2014 Fifa World Cup in June.
“Sale of TV panels above 55 inches are selling beyond our expectations and many will convert to Full HD TVs and 4K TVs,” Neelesh Batnagar, CEO of Emax Electronics, told Gulf News.
He said that ultra high-definition (UHD) or 4K TV and organic light-emitting diode (OLED) TV sales will not be as high as the LED TVs as it is a bit expensive. Consumers are taking a look and enquiring about 4K TVs.
To entice a consumer, Emax has launched an exchange offer where consumers can give their old TVs for a price and pay the difference when buying a new TV.
“We will see people preparing for the World Cup but IPL cricket matches are unlikely to add fuel to sales,” said Deepak Babani, CEO of Eros Electronics.
He said that big screen sizes and smart TVs will be in demand. April sales are better compared to March, but I don’t know whether it is due to IPL or not.
Affordable
According to a research firm IHS, overall TV sales in the Middle East and Africa this year are expected to be 17.7 million units compared to 16.8 million units last year, registering a growth of over five per cent.
“This year, the TV industry is moving to large screen sizes, especially over 55 inches. We have grown by 400 per cent this year in the first quarter of the year. People want to move to big-size screens as it has become affordable,” said Vinod Nair, general manager of Samsung Gulf Electronics’ CTV Business.
He said people will not wait till June to buy TVs as Gitex is the best time to buy TVs due to the best deals.
Samsung has reduced the prices of televisions by more than 10 per cent for Gitex.
Meanwhile, the LCD shipments in MEA are expected to grow by 10.35 per cent to 15.45 million this year compared to 14 million last year.
“4K TVs will be on top of consumers mind as some matches are expected to be recorded on 4K,” said Sean Connor, GM at Plug Ins.
In relation to television sales, he said trends show that current ownership is highest for 30-39 inches, followed by 40-42 inches.
“Size and resolution is the top purchase influencer for TVs in the UAE, but energy efficiency is the new influencer,” he said.
Beating expectations
Retailers are offering very good bundled deals at the event and consumers can save up to Dh10,000.
“The large-screen sizes above 55-inches have done pretty well on the first day, beating our expectations,” said Nadeem Khanzadah, Head of Retail, Jumbo Electronics.
Jumbo expects the next two months to be a good time for television sales and expects to have special offers for the World Cup closer to the start date.
“Many people will be replacing their old small-screen sizes to bigger screen sizes and Gitex is a good time to buy due to the special offers,” he said.
“Sales of UHD and OLED TVs will be limited as the products are expensive, but there are customers who want innovative and premium products,” said D.Y. Kim, president of LG Gulf.
