Samsung unveils latest AV products

Samsung Electronics Philippines Corp. unveiled yesterday its latest audio-visual products in a posh showcase at the Fiesta Pavilion of the Manila Hotel, which also kicked off the Samsung Digital Partners AV Roadshow 2007.

The new plasma and LCD television sets as well as MP3 players are expected to further extend Samsung’s leadership in the local TV market.

Samsung led the global TV market last year in both revenue and number of units sold, which is the first time the company achieved the feat since it entered the market 34 years ago.

Dong Ha Jang, vice president for consumer electronics sales and marketing of Samsung Electronics Philippines Corp., said the company has also clinched the number one position for LCD TVs in the Asian region, with a growth of more than 400 percent.

"Samsung is at the forefront of innovation in the digital arena. We are reaping the returns of our investments in design and technology," he told reporters.

He disclosed that 9.5 percent of Samsung’s total sales revenue is allotted to research and development, with strong focus on design and technology.

Its Bordeaux R7 LCD TV, for one, clinched the Red Dot Design Award last year and Jang said they expect the Bordeaux Plus line, which was unveiled yesterday, to capture a bigger slice of the market with its sleeker design. Three million Bordeaux R7s were sold worldwide last year.

"We are passionate about creating sleek, beautiful products that are packed with cutting-edge technologies to match consumers’ lifestyle needs," he said in a speech.

According to Jang, they are especially excited with the recent introduction of high definition (HD) in the region. Samsung is focusing on the HD TV market this year with a new line-up that includes the M8 full HD LCD TV and the Q9 Plasma TV.

The LCD market is projected to grow very fast until 2010. This year alone, it expects total sales to grow at least 2.5 percent.

The introduction of complementary technologies such as HD players, Blue Ray discs, game box consoles and the coming of HD broadcasting has fuelled the demand for more LCD televisions.

Aside from television sets, Samsung is also eyeing a bigger share of the MP3 market with the introduction of its YP-K3 and YP-T9B MP3 players.

The company admitted it is facing tough competition with its staunchest rival in the market, the iPod, which corners 70 percent of the MP3 player market.

However, Samsung has set its sights on a 300 percent increase in sales of its MP3 players to follow the more modest volume increase of 63 percent it achieved last year.

Its target is to become the number one MP3 player brand in the Asian region.