TPV Technology Group (冠捷科技集團) aims to take a 5 percent share of the local TV market next year amid slowing global TV sales.
“We do not want to miss any market, especially our home market, Taiwan,” TPV vice general manager Mario Hsu (徐文選) yesterday said on the sidelines of an event to announce the return of Philips TVs to Taiwan after a two-year absence. “We certainly want to have a share of the pie.”
TPV formed a joint venture, TP Vision, with Royal Philips Electronics NV in April last year to sell Philips-brand TVs in Europe, China, Taiwan and South America.
The group introduced 42-inch, 45-inch and 50-inch TVs yesterday and plans to expand its product lineup to 55-inch and 65-inch models and ultra-high-resolution TVs next year, Hsu said.
Philips TVs will be available at Carrefour outlets and through online shopping portal PCHome Online (網路家庭). The group aims to sell 120,000 units of branded TVs in Taiwan, representing 5 percent of the market’s 1.2 million units, Hsu said.
It is also in discussion with potential retailers to distribute its TVs at more brick-and-mortar stores to expand its sales network next year, he added.
TPV’s return to the Taiwanese market came as the global LCD TV market is forecast to drop 1.6 percent annually to as low as 202 million units this year, marking the first annual decline on record, market researcher TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said, citing slack demand in Europe and slower-than-expected growth in China.
“This year, we plan to ship 15 million TVs, including those for other brands,” Hsu said. “The figure is flat from last year as the growth of the global slim-screen TV market is slowing down.”
TPV Group also sells AOC-brand LCD monitors and TVs globally, targeting entry-level segments, in addition to providing manufacturing services for other brands, such as Funai Electronics, Vizio Inc and some Chinese TV vendors.
The group is targeted to sell as many as 8 million units of Philips TVs and AOC TVs globally this year, making it the 10th-largest TV supplier in the world. It holds up to 50 percent of China’s TV market, the company said.
As for its monitor business, Hsu said the company expected monitor shipments to reach 55 million units this year.
The group’s flagship company, TPV Technology Ltd (冠捷), the world’s biggest LCD monitor maker, is listed on the Hong Kong stock market.
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