DEEPCUT, SURREY, ENGLAND: European TV sales fell by 8.6 percent to 16.4 million sets in the third quarter of 2010, according to folks that count at Meko. The company’s latest “DisplayCast” report shows that flat panel sell-in quantity was also down quarterly to 15.3 million TV sets, while LED-backlit TV shipments were up to 24 percent of volume sales from 19 percent in 2Q.
The difference was attributed to a 2Q spike in sales brought on by World Cup promotions. The decline in 3Q sales was prevalent in Western Europe. Markets with the most pronounced decline were Spain, France, the United Kingdom and Italy. TV sell-in shipments to Spain were down by 40 percent quarter on quarter.
The fall was predictable, according to Goksen Sertler, Meko senior analyst for the TV market.
“In the first quarter, sell-in to Spain was pushed up because of digital switchover. In the second quarter, World Cup promotions kept the demand strong. After two consecutive strong quarters, it was no surprise to see very weak sell-in,” she said. “Our regular inventory tracking data showed us that there was a lot of inventory in the market already at the beginning of Q3. Set and panel makers are keen to sell the more expensive sets with LED backlights, but there is some consumer resistance to current pricing levels. However, the overall drop in sales last quarter was in line with our TV market forecast.”
TV brand ranking was the same as in the previous quarter with Samsung, LG and Sony as the top three brands followed by Philips and Panasonic.
