Major manufacturers ride consumption recovery, seek new expansion drivers

China's television manufacturing industry is expected to gain growth momentum this year, fueled by the steady recovery of consumption and the accelerated efforts made by major TV makers to expand application scenarios and seek new growth drivers, industry insiders said.

Hisense Group, a Qingdao, Shandong province-based home appliance company, said it will focus on major application scenarios covering family, commercial use and vehicle-mounted displays, and push to expand its presence in emerging display segments, such as augmented reality and virtual reality.

"We will enhance our capacities in the aspects of display technologies, television chips, cloud services, intelligent interaction and operating systems, and bolster the technological advances in laser TV, and liquid crystal and light-emitting diodes displays," said Li Wei, president of Hisense Visual Technology Co Ltd.

The company will continue to increase investment in AI-powered intelligent image chips, Li said, adding he is bullish on the prospects of laser TVs, which can display extra-large images with better picture quality and bring an immersive watching experience by utilizing laser display technology.

Li said laser TVs have witnessed speedy growth both at home and abroad, and are expected to become the mainstream display products worldwide. The company recently launched the world's first large-sized 8K laser TV.

Hisense has a comparatively complete layout in the whole display industry, which includes chips, module design, terminal device applications and operations, Li added.

Hisense Visual gained control of Xiamen Changelight Co Ltd in January, which specializes in the research and development, production and sales of semiconductor optoelectronic products. The acquisition will further strengthen Hisense Visual's strategic layout in the display industrial chain and help expand its footprint in mini- and micro LED displays.

Hisense ranked second in global television shipments in 2022, an increase of 16.1 percent year-on-year, according to market research company Omdia.

The company has boosted its brand awareness in recent years via sponsorship of major world-class sporting events, including the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament.

Statistics from Beijing-based consultancy All View Cloud, or AVC, which specializes in home appliances, showed that TV sales reached 36.34 million units nationwide last year, down 5.2 percent compared with 2021, while related sales revenue totaled 112.3 billion yuan ($16.3 billion), a fall of 12.9 percent year-on-year.

AVC said Hisense laser TVs accounted for more than a 60 percent share in the 100-inch and above large-sized TV market in China last year.

Peng Jianfeng, executive secretary general of the China Video Industry Association, said that the consumer electronics sector will see a rebound this year and the sales revenue of the domestic TV market is projected to stand at about 120 billion yuan in 2022, an increase of 5 to 6 percent yearly.

Data from research company China Market Monitor Co Ltd showed TV sales rose 5.3 percent year-on-year to 8.48 million units in the first quarter, estimating sales revenue will witness a slight increase during the upcoming five-day Labor Day holiday from a year earlier.

China has rolled out a series of stimulus measures to spur consumption, such as encouraging the replacement of old household appliances with new ones and bolstering the consumption of green and smart home appliances in rural areas.

"Boosting domestic demand is the top priority for ensuring stable economic growth. The measures to encourage spending on home appliances will not only satisfy people's demand for higher-quality products but also propel the intelligent transformation of the home appliance industry," said Zhao Meimei, assistant president of AVC.

Other home appliance manufacturers are accelerating efforts to expand their display and other new businesses. Skyworth has stepped up the push in multimedia, automotive electronic systems, smart home appliances and VR all-in-one machines.

Liang Zhenpeng, an independent researcher focusing on the home appliances sector, said the traditional TV market is almost saturated and companies need to seek new growth points. "New display technologies, such as organic light-emitting diode, or OLED TVs, laser TVs and curved-screen TVs, are all good choices and in line with ongoing consumption upgrades," he added.