Panasonic set to sell 1m 3-D TVs in US, Europe, Japan
Monday, 11 January 2010
LOS ANGELES, Jan 10 (Bloomberg): Panasonic Corp, the world's largest maker of plasma televisions, expects to sell as many as a million 3-D TVs in the next year in the US, Europe and Japan.
The company will begin shipping in March, Yoshi Yamada, North American chairman and chief executive officer for Osaka, Japan-based Panasonic, said yesterday in an interview. Prices haven't been set. The US will be the biggest market.
Adoption of 3-D TV, which requires viewers to wear special glasses, will be faster than the acceptance of high-definition TV because more films, programs and games will be available, Yamada said. Panasonic is actively seeking material from Hollywood and was a promotional partner in James Cameron's 3-D film "Avatar."
"We learned a lot of lessons," Yamada said at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Sony Corp and Samsung Electronics Co have also said that they plan to introduce 3-D sets.
The maker of Viera TVs, which introduced four 3-D plasma sets in sizes from 50 inches to 65 inches, announced a partnership with DirecTV Group Inc, the largest US satellite TV service, to promote three 3-D channels that will begin operating in June.
Two of the channels will provide regularly scheduled programming in 3-D, El Segundo, California-based DirecTV said at a CES press conference. The third would provide video-on-demand sports, music and other shows.
Panasonic, which doesn't have an ownership stake in the channels, plans to promote the programming in retail and other advertising, Yamada said. Marketing will also target DirecTV's 18 million subscribers, which he said includes 10 million customers with set-top boxes than can receive 3-D shows.
Panasonic and other TV makers charged too much for early high-definition TVs, Yamada said, adding the company is working to avoid that pitfall this time, without being more specific.
Buyers will get one set of 3-D glasses and be able to buy more that Panasonic plans to provide at affordable prices, he said.
To stoke demands for the sets, Panasonic also announced at the show that it will begin selling a 3-D high-definition camcorder and a Blu-ray player.
"What we have learned in selling high-definition sets is that the picture is what sells it," Yamada said. "When people see it in 3-D, they say 'wow."
The company will begin shipping in March, Yoshi Yamada, North American chairman and chief executive officer for Osaka, Japan-based Panasonic, said yesterday in an interview. Prices haven't been set. The US will be the biggest market.
Adoption of 3-D TV, which requires viewers to wear special glasses, will be faster than the acceptance of high-definition TV because more films, programs and games will be available, Yamada said. Panasonic is actively seeking material from Hollywood and was a promotional partner in James Cameron's 3-D film "Avatar."
"We learned a lot of lessons," Yamada said at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Sony Corp and Samsung Electronics Co have also said that they plan to introduce 3-D sets.
The maker of Viera TVs, which introduced four 3-D plasma sets in sizes from 50 inches to 65 inches, announced a partnership with DirecTV Group Inc, the largest US satellite TV service, to promote three 3-D channels that will begin operating in June.
Two of the channels will provide regularly scheduled programming in 3-D, El Segundo, California-based DirecTV said at a CES press conference. The third would provide video-on-demand sports, music and other shows.
Panasonic, which doesn't have an ownership stake in the channels, plans to promote the programming in retail and other advertising, Yamada said. Marketing will also target DirecTV's 18 million subscribers, which he said includes 10 million customers with set-top boxes than can receive 3-D shows.
Panasonic and other TV makers charged too much for early high-definition TVs, Yamada said, adding the company is working to avoid that pitfall this time, without being more specific.
Buyers will get one set of 3-D glasses and be able to buy more that Panasonic plans to provide at affordable prices, he said.
To stoke demands for the sets, Panasonic also announced at the show that it will begin selling a 3-D high-definition camcorder and a Blu-ray player.
"What we have learned in selling high-definition sets is that the picture is what sells it," Yamada said. "When people see it in 3-D, they say 'wow."