NPD Group Blog » As TV prices push down, brands try pushing back up

As TV prices push down, brands try pushing back up

Monday, January 12th, 2009
By Ross Rubin, Executive Director, NPD Connected Intelligence

While the economy continues to weigh down manufacturers, its pressures were not strong enough to crack the rose-colored glasses worn on their public faces at the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show. Among the causes for optimism cited were a long-term view of economic cycles, faith in the appeal of technology and the “next big thing,” the value of electronics versus spending on other leisure activities such as travel, the trust that consumers put in brand driving investment, and the competitive urge to “keep up with the Joneses” (or, if you’re the Joneses, to stay ahead of those wannabe Smiths).

On the brand front, Toshiba — which exposed a billion people around the world to its brand by having it featured at the dropping of the ball in Times Square — used its CES press conference to position its two main 2009 TV families. Its mainstream segment is aimed at meeting the “everyday right price” while a redefined Regza premium segment is now “not your everyday LCD TV”. The latter boasts premium designs and a lot of features. As is the case for all manufacturers, though, image-enhancement technologies are delivering diminishing returns in value. To contrast, Internet connectivity, as I noted in the Q&A at the NPD cocktail reception presentation this week, is easy to behold. And I expect that as consumers gain familiarity with PC-based Internet video, it will become easier to explain.

Samsung, which didn’t have a premium set sub-brand, launched its “Luxia” line at CES, which focuses on slim designs, including a slickly designed companion wall-mount that brings the television closer to the wall, and LED backlighting. Slimmer designs were shown off by many manufacturers and have a good shot at driving up-sell.

Reinforcing existing premium brands or launching new ones can offer something with a bit of mystique as was mentioned during the TWICE retailer roundtable in which I participated this week, but they can also help protect a portion of the product mix at a time when manufacturers and retailers will have a hard time shifting focus away from price.

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