Threat to Samsung, LG
China, which has become a powerful nation in the smartphone area due to the huge popularity of Xiaomi Technology, is actively seeking to dominate the U.S. market with TVs, putting Korean firms on edge.
According to the LG Economic Research Institute on Nov. 4, large U.S. retailers like Best Buy and Costco are gearing up for Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days in the U.S., with the launch of Hisense TVs.
Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving Day in the U.S., and falls on the fourth Friday in November. On that day online and offline retailers and famous brands slash prices by up to 90 percent, and continue to do so until Christmas Day. During the period, retailers earn an estimated 20 percent of their annual sales.
Costco may try to increase sales with the release of Vizio and Hisense TVs. Best Buy, where TVs comprise the largest proportion of the total sales, already started to carry mid-to-large Hisense HD TVs.
In particular, these retailers are paying a lot of attention to Hisense 4K Ultra HD TVs. 4K resolution refers to a display device or content with a 4,096 pixel horizontal resolution. Even though Sony was the pioneer in UHD TVs, those expensive products did not receive a very positive consumer reaction. The launch price of 55 in. UHD TVs amounted to US$4,000.
However, prices have been sharply declining, owing to increased supplies. Currently, 55 in. UHD TVs are sold for US$1,200 to $1,800 at Best Buy and Costco, which is similar to the price for Full HD TVs in 2012. The current price is less than half of the number for 2013. The price of Hisense's 65 in. UHD TVs is particularly noticeable, since they are sold at US$1,299 per unit at Costco.com. The number is only half of the prices of TVs in the same league produced by Samsung or LG Electronics. The price of Hisense's 65 in. UHD TVs is US$1,000 lower than that offered by Vizio.