Sony Dumps Rear Projection TV
By Greg Tarr -- TWICE, 12/19/2007
San Diego – Sony will exit the rear projection TV category to focus on flat-panel LCD TV after current inventories of its 3LCD- and SXRD-based products are exhausted, a company spokesman confirmed.
“We are moving our resources more toward LCD TV, because that’s what people really want,” a Sony spokesman said, confirming a published report.
The company began telling select retailers about the decision following several months of study, the spokesman said, adding that Sony will continue selling front projection products through its custom home theater division.
The decision came despite the fact that Sony ranked second in the category for sell-through, with 28 percent of the U.S. market through November, behind Samsung, according to The NPD Group. Sony rear projection sets were also No. 1 in shelf-share at 31.77 percent in November, according to Current Analysis West, an NPD Group company.
Sony’s decision comes as the market for rear projection products continues to compress under advances in flat-panel TV technologies to larger screen sizes and ever-declining prices.
DisplaySearch, an NPD Group company, forecasts North American sales of 1.6 million rear projection sets in 2007, down from 3.1 million in 2006. The firm is calling for total rear projection sales of about 670,000 in 2008.
Sony’s decision to drop the rear projection category to focus on flat-panel TV follows similar recent decisions by Philips, Toshiba and Hitachi, and leaves Samsung, Mitsubishi, RCA, Panasonic and JVC as the major players in the segment.
Manufacturers remaining in rear projection are now moving to larger screen sizes, offering a better value than either plasma or LCD flat-panel sets.
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I have a Sony rear projectin TV. It does not appear to have the clarity of the new flat screen plasma or LCD screens. Apart from buying a new set pleas advise if there is any way I can improve the display of my set.
Regards,
Ian Clynes
Ian Clynes - 2008-14-3 07:42:00 EDT -
I just bought a 60 inch rear projection for Christmas this year 2007. Will SONY USA continue to make parts i.e. tube for these units when they war out in four years or what?
I could had bought a smaller screen 46 inch for $500.00 less but I did not see that much difference in quality in the picture over the LCD. It was better but not that much! I wanted the $2000.00 60 inch larger screen but was not going to pay 4500.00 for a 55 inch LCD!
If anybody knows answers to me question please email me and thanks in advance!!
Sincerely,
R. Eddie Presley
Eddie Presley - 2007-30-12 21:17:00 EST -
Flat panel LCD's look like cartoons and have tremendous clouding issues just check the web. One site had 263 pages of clouding problems and permanent red and black pixel dots on flat LCD's) You need 10 or more bad pixels before a replacement. I think Sony is OUT OF THEIR MINDS dropping the LCoS.
With everybody and his uncle making them the profit margin will be less than RPTV's in two years before Organic diodes even come out. Also everybody even Sony is pushing price cuts rather than increasing quality on LCD's and that is why evey maker has such problems with them. Bad business plan since China is making millions of them.
LCD's fill up only 50 percent of the screen with pixels due to electrical connections. That is why they look like cartoons. DLP's fill up 91 percent with pixels not connections. LCoS fill up 92 percent of the screen with pixels that is why they look so real.
This is a shame since front projector LCoS are for darkened rooms as opposed to RPTV LCoS. That is why they should wait for organic diodes in 2012 before this dropping of RPTV's
RRaymond - 2007-21-12 16:36:00 EST -
There have been rumors floating around about this for a week or so. Not that I doubt your source, but why hasn't Sony issued a press release regarding this significant business move? Nothing on the investor relations news page. Are there any estimates how many RPTV sets remain in ineventory? How quickly will they become non-existent in the retail market?
Bill Williams - 2007-19-12 19:45:00 EST
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