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CE Pricing Stabilizes Due To TV, Other Shortages

TWICE:

Pricing reportedly has stabilized
in several categories. If true, why is that?
What should the second half bring in
terms of pricing?

Fred Towns, sales and marketing senior
VP, New Age Electronics:

Pricing
has stabilized in multiple categories because
inventory is being managed tightly
and more emphasis is being made to meet
consumer demand during peak selling
seasons when the consumer is looking for
a great deal like a holiday. Many retailers
are offering a larger selection of bundled
solutions and the consumer has interest
in more solution-oriented options.

David Kaplan, executive director,
Digital Delivery Group:

There always
seems to be a gravitational pull on flatpanel
television pricing, even when supply
is tight. There may be some stability
at MAP or MSRP but the age of the
instant rebate … is still with us. We are
seeing a new generation of legacy audio
products that simply provide better
performance and feature sets at established
price points. While I believe
there may be a slight uptick in ASP in
the second half if 3D gets traction, I
don’t see big changes in pricing trends
or stability.

Mark A. Gustavson, executive director/
marketing and communications,
WYNIT:

Manufacturers have made a
concerted effort to maintain price integrity,
beginning shortly after the
2009 holiday season. Specific categories
include flash memory and digital
video. While we expect scheduled
price reductions in key promotional
periods, it seems that supplies are
in good alignment with projected demand,
which should minimize any major
price fluctuations.


Jeff Davis, sales senior VP at D&H
Distributing:

Price stabilization is often
a direct result of product shortages.
From D&H’s perspective, we haven’t
seen any significant price drops in a
quarter or so, and we don’t anticipate
any soon.

Dennis Holzer, executive director, PowerHouse
Alliance:

Pricing recently for the
most part has begun to stabilize or maybe
even increase slightly based on new
models and technology. When the economy
was hurting early last year, everyone
became even more aggressive, from the
manufacturer down, simply cutting price,
in order to not lose any market share or
business. Ultimately, everyone made less
and really did not sell that much more. I
think the second half will bring more stabilized
pricing, more importantly tighter
controls from the factories to all resellers
so there is not a repeat.

Warren Chaiken, president/COO,
Almo:

Similar to 2009 holiday, we’ll
be seeing tight controls on quantity of
goods manufactured. Therefore pricing
will remain more consistent with fewer
instant-rebate programs. However, I do
think we’ll see a $99 Blu-ray this season.

Doug Robison, president, DSI Systems:

Pricing has stabilized, but that
is primarily due to shortages in highdemand
goods, as well as the fact that
most manufacturers are still transitioning
into this year’s product lines. I anticipate
pricing to be as competitive as
always in the back half, especially as
supply improves.

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