HDTV/3D TV News
It’s always hard to say goodbye. Specially if its with someone that has made a big impact in our lives. Well, its going to be hard but we have to do it. Pioneer Electronics, in tune to the world’s economic problems, has announced that it will exit the TV business by March 2010, cut 10,000 jobs worldwide (6,000 full-time employees worldwide and 4,000 temporary workers) and center on car electronics and other home electronics businesses.
Pioneer made the announcement as it posted operating and net losses, as well as lower sales, for its fiscal third quarter, ended Dec. 31, and is projecting a record net loss of 130 billion yen, or $1.44 billion, for its fiscal year ending March 31.
The company said it will continue to provide after-sales services even after the withdrawal from the market. In its home electronics business Pioneer will center on audio products, DJ equipment and cable TV set-top boxes and will emphasize sound as they take advantage of our extensive audio technologies and expertise developed over the years.
To date, the company’s Kuro line of HDTVs were widely regarded as the best-in-class plasma displays available.
However, it’s not just Pioneer. To a lesser extent, Vizio, the Southern California-based upstart that’s built a successful business selling relatively inexpensive HDTVs, will stop selling plasma TVs and focus on LCD sets. The news is the second blow this week for plasma proponents.
As The New York Times points out, the departure of Pioneer and Vizio leaves just three major players in the U.S. plasma TV market: LG, Panasonic, and Samsung. Given consumers’ overwhelming preference for LCD models, Vizio’s decision to ditch plasma isn’t too surprising. According to industry researcher Display Search, LCD outsells plasma by a 7 to 1 margin. And since Vizio’s current product lineup on its website shows just 5 plasma versus 20 LCD models, the change shouldn’t prove too jarring for its customers.
Despite consumers’ preference for LCD, many videophiles believe that plasma offers the superior picture, particularly for home theater settings. Plasma sets cost less than comparably-sized LCD models too. Then again, LCD displays are brighter are often work better in light-filled family rooms.
But don’t write off plasma just yet. Shipments of plasma TVs actually rose 28 percent during the 4th quarter of 2008 (the holiday shopping season), and were up 10 percent for the entire year, according to Display Search. By comparison, LCD shipments in the 2008 holiday quarter actually fell 2% versus the same period in 2007.
Whatever happens, we’ll all just have to wait and see.
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