Speaking at Sony’s annual trade show in Scotland, Mohit Parasher, Sony’s new managing director, and Andy Benson, commercial director, identified the last stage of the digital switchover, 3DTV and ‘connected television’ as three main market opportunities in 2011 and called retailers to prepare their stores to be able to take advantage of them.
“The first major opportunity for 2011 is going to be the 5.5 million analogue sets which will be switched off this year,” said Mohit Parasher, Sony’s UK new managing director. “Although most of the living room sets are digital the smaller TVs in the bedrooms, kitchen and studies are still analogue. In the UK, 50% of the market is below 32in. If using the opportunity of the digital switchover we could convince consumers to move the digital TV to the bedroom and buy a new television for the lounge with a larger screen size, we would fundamentally change the structure of the UK market for ever. Now is the time to take action and make this conversion happen.”
Mr Parasher also argued that, “The fact the new 32in TV set is almost the same size as the old 26in one should help this process.”
Mr Benson stressed that the ability to demonstrate internet capability on the shop floor will be fundamental. “If you’re not demonstrating internet capabilities of televisions you’re missing on consumer proposition. Bearing in mind that 95% of our large-screen TVs will be internet-enabled, they should be connected in store, otherwise the retailers will be undertrading their value to the consumer.”
He went on to say: “Retailers who have the ability to demonstrate, communicate and guide the consumers through the new technology confusion towards the physical purchase are very important for us.”
Sony will continue its training for retailers in 2011, “in a format which will help us to communicate to the retail staff our passion and desire for the latest technology and help them to share it with the consumers,” concluded Mr Benson.
