Philips Electronics (Thailand) Ltd., introduces its latest truly LED TV 9000 series, a full HD LCD display, with a 1920x1080p resolution featuring with direct-lit LED backlighting technology and offering pure performance in picture sharpness, motion and contrast and features the latest innovations in LCD technology – including the latest in internet TV.
Consumers enjoy breathtaking pictures and use up to 40% less energy with Philips award winning LED Pro. Over 1000 LED's are operated selectively in a grid as a backlight for the display. They generate brilliant light in bright image areas, and are dimmed completely in dark areas, saving energy. Combined with the powerful Perfect Pixel HD Engine, the result is a stunning picture with extreme contrast, sharpness and vibrant color. With LED Pro black is black and white is bright.
The Perfect Pixel HD engine deliver unrivalled sharpness and detail. It is also the world’s fastest LCD courtesy of 200Hz Clear LCD and an unbeatable 1 millisecond response time which banishes the motion blur problem common with LCD TVs. 200Hz Clear LCD creates extreme motion sharpness for clear and vibrant images even with fast on-screen motion. It results in a powerful dynamic contrast ratio up to 5,000,000:1.
Perfect Colors is the combination of new color sources, advanced color processing for both existing and new sources, and a Wide Color Gamut display. The powerful 17-bit Color Booster technology pumps out a mesmerizing 2,250 trillion colors, producing brilliant life-like images with natural skin and white tones.
Perfect Natural Motion results in smoother and quieter pictures with excellent sharpness surpassing even the motion performance in a cinema.
Philips immersive Ambilight Spectra 3 technology, which accurately identifies dominant on-screen colors and generates accurately-matched ambient lighting from three sides of the screen onto a rear wall.
As pure performance includes both sound quality as well as the picture quality, the 9700 series sports 2x15W high-efficiency speakers. This provides leading sound performance.
Another highlighted feature is Net TV, which enables simple and quick internet access to a wide range of sites from a start page on the TV screen.
It is also equipped with both Ethernet and WiFi connectivity, allowing them to stream data directly from a DLNA-compliant computer. Additional features include give HDMI 1.3 inputs, integrated subwoofers and tweeters, and full 1080p video output.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
Auckland Museum Lights Up with Philips LED Technology for its 80th Birthday Largest Outdoor Installation of Solid State Lighting in New Zealand
Philips Lighting is proud to announce its role in the upgrade of one of New Zealand’s most stunning architectural and cultural landmarks, as Auckland Museum unveils a dramatic lighting transformation for the 80th birthday celebrations of its building. The striking installation designed by Light Emotion and specified by New Zealand’s Modus Architectural Lighting utilises Philips’ latest LED technology both inside and outside the Greco-Roman inspired building, as well as display lighting from Philips Selecon - the Museum’s luminaire manufacturer of choice - throughout the interior.
Sitting atop the Domain, the Auckland Museum has watched the growth of New Zealand’s largest city below, whilst maintaining its relevance as a place of great historical significance. Symbolising the cultural importance to New Zealand’s past, present and future, the Museum will now take centre-stage in the city’s night sky alight with bold and emotive colour, thanks to Philips’ state-of-the-art programmable and energy efficient LED lighting technology.
“We are illuminating the building, not only to honour its architectural magnificence, but to signify the importance of the Museum’s connection with the city. This iconic building should be seen from all vantage points throughout our city, and we are proud to illuminate it in an economically friendly and beautiful new way,” says Museum Director Dr Vanda Vitali. “We want to mark the building’s 80th year and honour the War Memorial aspect of the Museum in a truly innovative manner.”
The Museum’s exterior installation utilises Philips ColorGraze Powercore and ColorBlast Powercore fixtures to light the neoclassical structure’s façade and columns. Through the use of these small, yet powerful LED lights the Museum can change the exterior’s look and feel simply with the touch of a button, enabling the Museum to enhance its profile on the city skyline and create new colorful illumination experiences for visitors throughout each year.
“This installation marks the second major landmark that Philips has lit with LED technology in Auckland this year, following the upgrade to SkyCity’s SkyTower,” says Philips Electronics Australia and New Zealand CEO, Harry van Dyk. “As a company whose heritage in New Zealand spans more than 80 years, and more recently the acquisition of award-winning luminaire manufacturer Selecon, and our leadership in LED technology, Philips is immensely proud to play a role in transforming Auckland Museum, one of the country’s most important institutions.”
The two-part lighting upgrade also incorporates an interior upgrade, which includes creating a controllable, flexible environment in the Musuem’s foyer with Philips coloured LED technology, as well as the iW and eW Blast Powercore and eW Graze Powercore, energy efficient bright white LED solutions, enabling the space to be aesthetically changed for special events.
The current interior refurbishment also includes the installation of Philips Selecon’s award-winning Selecon Display Profile* high efficiency 35W metal halide model which combines exceptional light output and power savings with theatrical effect and functionality. Philips Selecon has supplied over 1000 luminaires since the 1990s, enhancing the visitor experience by adding colour, texture, shape and movement, while at the same time protecting and preserving the exhibits for future generations.
The installation was designed by Light Emotion and specified in part by Modus Architectural Lighting.
Sitting atop the Domain, the Auckland Museum has watched the growth of New Zealand’s largest city below, whilst maintaining its relevance as a place of great historical significance. Symbolising the cultural importance to New Zealand’s past, present and future, the Museum will now take centre-stage in the city’s night sky alight with bold and emotive colour, thanks to Philips’ state-of-the-art programmable and energy efficient LED lighting technology.
“We are illuminating the building, not only to honour its architectural magnificence, but to signify the importance of the Museum’s connection with the city. This iconic building should be seen from all vantage points throughout our city, and we are proud to illuminate it in an economically friendly and beautiful new way,” says Museum Director Dr Vanda Vitali. “We want to mark the building’s 80th year and honour the War Memorial aspect of the Museum in a truly innovative manner.”
The Museum’s exterior installation utilises Philips ColorGraze Powercore and ColorBlast Powercore fixtures to light the neoclassical structure’s façade and columns. Through the use of these small, yet powerful LED lights the Museum can change the exterior’s look and feel simply with the touch of a button, enabling the Museum to enhance its profile on the city skyline and create new colorful illumination experiences for visitors throughout each year.
“This installation marks the second major landmark that Philips has lit with LED technology in Auckland this year, following the upgrade to SkyCity’s SkyTower,” says Philips Electronics Australia and New Zealand CEO, Harry van Dyk. “As a company whose heritage in New Zealand spans more than 80 years, and more recently the acquisition of award-winning luminaire manufacturer Selecon, and our leadership in LED technology, Philips is immensely proud to play a role in transforming Auckland Museum, one of the country’s most important institutions.”
The two-part lighting upgrade also incorporates an interior upgrade, which includes creating a controllable, flexible environment in the Musuem’s foyer with Philips coloured LED technology, as well as the iW and eW Blast Powercore and eW Graze Powercore, energy efficient bright white LED solutions, enabling the space to be aesthetically changed for special events.
The current interior refurbishment also includes the installation of Philips Selecon’s award-winning Selecon Display Profile* high efficiency 35W metal halide model which combines exceptional light output and power savings with theatrical effect and functionality. Philips Selecon has supplied over 1000 luminaires since the 1990s, enhancing the visitor experience by adding colour, texture, shape and movement, while at the same time protecting and preserving the exhibits for future generations.
The installation was designed by Light Emotion and specified in part by Modus Architectural Lighting.
Sony reaffirms its leadership position with new range of innovative digital products
Sony Thai Co., Ltd., the market leader in innovative electrical appliances to suit all consumers’ lifestyles, today announced its 2009 business direction and marketing strategies, while unveiling a range of products to drive its business growth in 2009, at the ‘SONY Annual Press and Dealer Conference 2009’ held at the Swissotel Le Concorde. The extended new product portfolio includes Bravia LCD TVs, Cybershot digital cameras, Alpha DSLR cameras among others, highlighting the company’s commitment to provide an inspiring, fulfilling consumer experience.
“Against the backdrop of persisting concerns from the worldwide financial crisis, Sony Asia Pacific has managed to show positive growth for three consecutive years, thanks to significant contribution of markets such as Thailand. This remarkable achievement is based on Sony’s leadership in High Definition innovation, allowing us to deliver digital lifestyle experiences based on real consumers demands as well as our commitment to building the Sony brand in Thailand. The partnership with Sony group of companies under Sony United spirit also serves as a key contributing factor to our success,” said Mr Narihiko Uemura, Managing Director, Sony Electronics Asia Pacific.
“Despite the fact that Thailand’s electrical appliance market has been affected by the global economic recession and political uncertainties, Sony Thai has succeeded in maintaining its business growth with increased market shares in a wide range of product categories, including Cybershot digital cameras. Furthermore, Sony has been able to retain its number one position in audio-visual (AV) products with 25% (by market value). It is expected that this year Sony Thai will grow more than 10%, thanks to increasing market trend and demand, particularly for LCD TVs, notebook PCs, digital cameras, and D-SLR cameras, etc.” According to Sony Thai’s Managing Director, Mr.Taisuke Nakanishi.
“Since August last year, Thai business sectors have suffered from stormy business climates, amidst the ongoing global financial crisis. Take it into account, the above conditions, this year we will place more emphasis on strategic areas of high-growth product categories, like Bravia LCD TVs, Alpha D-SLR cameras, Cyber-shot digital cameras, and VAIO notebook PCs to achieve double digit sales growth using new strategies and innovative communications channels to meet diverse and distinctive consumer demands, along with integrated CRM activities as part of the effort to maintain our long-term customer base, while enhancing the value-added marketing solution and operation excellence as well as Sony brand’s leadership in AV IT,” He said.
A greater focus for Sony’s business direction for 2009 will be on satisfying the demands of existing customers with innovative new products featuring distinctive technology developed to strengthen its position as a premium brand. The continuous Youth Marketing strategy aimed at capturing young consumers and enhancing an innovative brand image will also be employed through product groups, incorporating a series of out-of-the-box marketing campaigns to convey a unique lifestyle to consumers such as the Let’s Color Strategy under which Sony makes its color products available in all core product groups, ranging from Bravia, Cybershot cameras, Handycam, Walkman, and VAIO. Furthermore, integrated marketing communication activities, covering all media channels, broadcast, print, online, as well as consumer events and road show activities, will be organized in order to secure Sony’s new target, teenager customers effectively. Also a key to driving Sony’s success will be the collaboration with other Sony companies in both global and local levels, and strategic business partners such as True EPL (English Premier League), Adidas, and sponsorships of Thai movies such as Dear Galileo.
This year, Sony Thai will gear up to launch exciting activities to communicate with the young generation. The official partnership with the 2010 FIFA World Cup football competition in South Africa and an agreement with Kaká (Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite), FIFA’s 2007 Best Player, for its latest Bravia LCD TV promotional campaign are important strategies for Sony to directly target key customer groups.
“The success and continued growth of Sony, both in terms of business and as a trusted brand, can be attributed to the excellent cooperation from dealerships nationwide, as well as the consistent support from our valued customers who appreciate our product quality. The achievement is reflected in in a number of consumer surveys conducted by various institutes and the highly-recognized awards given to Sony as a top-of-mind brand in consumer’s choice, including the prestigious Reader's Digest Trusted Brand award and consumer surveys by BrandAge and Marketeer magazines. Consequently, Sony will move forward to strengthen its dealerships’ capabilities while also differentiating the Sony brand from other rivals to deliver a new level of satisfaction to our consumers,” Mr Taisuke Nakanishi added.
Sony Thai will also gear up to form a partnership with other Sony companies which include Sony Ericsson, Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment, along with business partners like the leading global sports equipment and clothing maker Adidas, to unveil a series of marketing campaigns and to present consumers with brand-new experiences, while reaffirming Sony brand image as a sophisticated brand that perfectly blends into today's fast-paced lifestyles of consumers.
Sony’s extensive line-up of products come in unrivalled sleek designs and feature state-of-the-art technology, offering a wide range of choices for consumers’ trendy lifestyles. They include:
· An extraordinarily slim new 40-inch ZX1 Bravia HD LCD TV measuring a barely believable 9.9mm at its slimmest section, priced at 149,990 baht
· A Sony Cybershot DSC-HX1 featuring capability of up to 10 frames per second, achieved through a recently developed high-speed Exmor CMOS sensor and Sony G lens and priced at 19,990 baht
· The lightest ever Alpha DSLR-A230 digital camera with a sleek and durable pure titanium body as well as the Alpha A380 with an exclusive Sony feature, Quick AF Live View, for responsive auto focusing and variable-angle shooting while framing the subject on the LCD monitor
· Sony Handycam HDR-XR520 with the newly developed “Exmor R CMOS Sensor” to capture clear images even in low light condition, and the HDR-TG5 Handycam camcorders with 16GB internal memory are among the six other new models of brand new line-up for Sony Handycam range.
· Walkman® X1000 series Video MP4 Player with touch screen display and wifi connection support for the ultimate personal entertainment experience priced at 12,990 baht for the 16 GB model, and 15,990 baht for 32 GB model.
· A Walkman NWZ-W202 MP3 player boasting its wearable unique design for the dynamic lifestyle of today’s teenagers with an affordable retail price of 3,490 baht.
· Introducing a brand new offering of the much-talked about Sony VAIO P in gold, complimenting the colorful range of the mobile computing technology in red, black, white, and green.
“Against the backdrop of persisting concerns from the worldwide financial crisis, Sony Asia Pacific has managed to show positive growth for three consecutive years, thanks to significant contribution of markets such as Thailand. This remarkable achievement is based on Sony’s leadership in High Definition innovation, allowing us to deliver digital lifestyle experiences based on real consumers demands as well as our commitment to building the Sony brand in Thailand. The partnership with Sony group of companies under Sony United spirit also serves as a key contributing factor to our success,” said Mr Narihiko Uemura, Managing Director, Sony Electronics Asia Pacific.
“Despite the fact that Thailand’s electrical appliance market has been affected by the global economic recession and political uncertainties, Sony Thai has succeeded in maintaining its business growth with increased market shares in a wide range of product categories, including Cybershot digital cameras. Furthermore, Sony has been able to retain its number one position in audio-visual (AV) products with 25% (by market value). It is expected that this year Sony Thai will grow more than 10%, thanks to increasing market trend and demand, particularly for LCD TVs, notebook PCs, digital cameras, and D-SLR cameras, etc.” According to Sony Thai’s Managing Director, Mr.Taisuke Nakanishi.
“Since August last year, Thai business sectors have suffered from stormy business climates, amidst the ongoing global financial crisis. Take it into account, the above conditions, this year we will place more emphasis on strategic areas of high-growth product categories, like Bravia LCD TVs, Alpha D-SLR cameras, Cyber-shot digital cameras, and VAIO notebook PCs to achieve double digit sales growth using new strategies and innovative communications channels to meet diverse and distinctive consumer demands, along with integrated CRM activities as part of the effort to maintain our long-term customer base, while enhancing the value-added marketing solution and operation excellence as well as Sony brand’s leadership in AV IT,” He said.
A greater focus for Sony’s business direction for 2009 will be on satisfying the demands of existing customers with innovative new products featuring distinctive technology developed to strengthen its position as a premium brand. The continuous Youth Marketing strategy aimed at capturing young consumers and enhancing an innovative brand image will also be employed through product groups, incorporating a series of out-of-the-box marketing campaigns to convey a unique lifestyle to consumers such as the Let’s Color Strategy under which Sony makes its color products available in all core product groups, ranging from Bravia, Cybershot cameras, Handycam, Walkman, and VAIO. Furthermore, integrated marketing communication activities, covering all media channels, broadcast, print, online, as well as consumer events and road show activities, will be organized in order to secure Sony’s new target, teenager customers effectively. Also a key to driving Sony’s success will be the collaboration with other Sony companies in both global and local levels, and strategic business partners such as True EPL (English Premier League), Adidas, and sponsorships of Thai movies such as Dear Galileo.
This year, Sony Thai will gear up to launch exciting activities to communicate with the young generation. The official partnership with the 2010 FIFA World Cup football competition in South Africa and an agreement with Kaká (Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite), FIFA’s 2007 Best Player, for its latest Bravia LCD TV promotional campaign are important strategies for Sony to directly target key customer groups.
“The success and continued growth of Sony, both in terms of business and as a trusted brand, can be attributed to the excellent cooperation from dealerships nationwide, as well as the consistent support from our valued customers who appreciate our product quality. The achievement is reflected in in a number of consumer surveys conducted by various institutes and the highly-recognized awards given to Sony as a top-of-mind brand in consumer’s choice, including the prestigious Reader's Digest Trusted Brand award and consumer surveys by BrandAge and Marketeer magazines. Consequently, Sony will move forward to strengthen its dealerships’ capabilities while also differentiating the Sony brand from other rivals to deliver a new level of satisfaction to our consumers,” Mr Taisuke Nakanishi added.
Sony Thai will also gear up to form a partnership with other Sony companies which include Sony Ericsson, Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment, along with business partners like the leading global sports equipment and clothing maker Adidas, to unveil a series of marketing campaigns and to present consumers with brand-new experiences, while reaffirming Sony brand image as a sophisticated brand that perfectly blends into today's fast-paced lifestyles of consumers.
Sony’s extensive line-up of products come in unrivalled sleek designs and feature state-of-the-art technology, offering a wide range of choices for consumers’ trendy lifestyles. They include:
· An extraordinarily slim new 40-inch ZX1 Bravia HD LCD TV measuring a barely believable 9.9mm at its slimmest section, priced at 149,990 baht
· A Sony Cybershot DSC-HX1 featuring capability of up to 10 frames per second, achieved through a recently developed high-speed Exmor CMOS sensor and Sony G lens and priced at 19,990 baht
· The lightest ever Alpha DSLR-A230 digital camera with a sleek and durable pure titanium body as well as the Alpha A380 with an exclusive Sony feature, Quick AF Live View, for responsive auto focusing and variable-angle shooting while framing the subject on the LCD monitor
· Sony Handycam HDR-XR520 with the newly developed “Exmor R CMOS Sensor” to capture clear images even in low light condition, and the HDR-TG5 Handycam camcorders with 16GB internal memory are among the six other new models of brand new line-up for Sony Handycam range.
· Walkman® X1000 series Video MP4 Player with touch screen display and wifi connection support for the ultimate personal entertainment experience priced at 12,990 baht for the 16 GB model, and 15,990 baht for 32 GB model.
· A Walkman NWZ-W202 MP3 player boasting its wearable unique design for the dynamic lifestyle of today’s teenagers with an affordable retail price of 3,490 baht.
· Introducing a brand new offering of the much-talked about Sony VAIO P in gold, complimenting the colorful range of the mobile computing technology in red, black, white, and green.
SANYO Welcomes the Year 2010 As the First Brand in Thailand to Have Almost 40 Product Lines
Showing Intelligent Application That Communicates through HD-Wireless and Blending, and Displays Panorama Picture
SANYO will be the first brand in Thailand to approach market in 2010 by expanding projector product line with almost 40 new models and displaying innovative technologies. SANYO projectors will be on sale in 2010 with as the largest product line in Thailand and in the world.
Mr. Tatsuhiko Tachibana General Manager of SANYO Electric Co., Ltd., revealed at the press conference that “Nowadays, the quality of SANYO projector is recognized globally. It is another product line that is expected to provide overall income for SANYO. Having large factory to do research and development by our own technologies provides strong point for the product. This makes applications to be continually develops and fulfill more usage requirements.”
Last year, SANYO projector took 8% market share, which made it raked no.3. For 5,000 lumens and above models, SANYO took 29% market share, the highest amount in the world. The mentioned models took 36% market share in Thailand. Having imported and sold projectors in Thailand for 16 years, SANYO believes that Thai customers are still satisfied in good product performance warranty and post sales service.
Recently, SANYO (Thailand) Co., Ltd., is proud to present the latest innovative projector PDG-DHT100L. It is equipped with HD-wireless communication system and blending capability. Panorama picture displaying is enabled by operating at least 2 projectors. Its price starts at approximate 1,200,000 baht (includes VAT).
Ms.Ranee Sittikaew, Senior Multimedia Sales Manager of Sanyo (Thailand) Co., Ltd., said that the debut of 40 new projectors today (October 15) is purposed to affirm leadership in multimedia market as the only manufacturer that have the most product lines in Thailand and in the world. The overall market value in Thailand this year is expected to be around 50,000 units, which is a reduction compared to last year because of economic downturn.
In 2010, overall projector market is believed to expand for 10-15% if there is no factor, such as economic downturn or political situation, to have an impact on customer confidence.
“We plan to retain our top spot in projector market next year. At present, we have 12% market share with customer base covering all sectors, including government organizations, academies, private companies, large SI stores, national picture and sound system renting companies, and home users. Nowadays, projector has cutting-edge performance to be home entertainment appliance.” Ms.Ranee said.
SANYO focuses on 2 marketing strategies, which are strong sales management by providing expert to advice customer and product warranty. Customer can be sure that projector is 2-year warranted and cathode ray tube is warranted up to 1 year, or 1,000-hour usage. Sanyo provide longer warranty time compared to competitors, as well as fast spare reservation and service.
SANYO will be the first brand in Thailand to approach market in 2010 by expanding projector product line with almost 40 new models and displaying innovative technologies. SANYO projectors will be on sale in 2010 with as the largest product line in Thailand and in the world.
Mr. Tatsuhiko Tachibana General Manager of SANYO Electric Co., Ltd., revealed at the press conference that “Nowadays, the quality of SANYO projector is recognized globally. It is another product line that is expected to provide overall income for SANYO. Having large factory to do research and development by our own technologies provides strong point for the product. This makes applications to be continually develops and fulfill more usage requirements.”
Last year, SANYO projector took 8% market share, which made it raked no.3. For 5,000 lumens and above models, SANYO took 29% market share, the highest amount in the world. The mentioned models took 36% market share in Thailand. Having imported and sold projectors in Thailand for 16 years, SANYO believes that Thai customers are still satisfied in good product performance warranty and post sales service.
Recently, SANYO (Thailand) Co., Ltd., is proud to present the latest innovative projector PDG-DHT100L. It is equipped with HD-wireless communication system and blending capability. Panorama picture displaying is enabled by operating at least 2 projectors. Its price starts at approximate 1,200,000 baht (includes VAT).
Ms.Ranee Sittikaew, Senior Multimedia Sales Manager of Sanyo (Thailand) Co., Ltd., said that the debut of 40 new projectors today (October 15) is purposed to affirm leadership in multimedia market as the only manufacturer that have the most product lines in Thailand and in the world. The overall market value in Thailand this year is expected to be around 50,000 units, which is a reduction compared to last year because of economic downturn.
In 2010, overall projector market is believed to expand for 10-15% if there is no factor, such as economic downturn or political situation, to have an impact on customer confidence.
“We plan to retain our top spot in projector market next year. At present, we have 12% market share with customer base covering all sectors, including government organizations, academies, private companies, large SI stores, national picture and sound system renting companies, and home users. Nowadays, projector has cutting-edge performance to be home entertainment appliance.” Ms.Ranee said.
SANYO focuses on 2 marketing strategies, which are strong sales management by providing expert to advice customer and product warranty. Customer can be sure that projector is 2-year warranted and cathode ray tube is warranted up to 1 year, or 1,000-hour usage. Sanyo provide longer warranty time compared to competitors, as well as fast spare reservation and service.
Midea, a leading electrical appliance conglomerate from China, announces its complete market penetration into Thailand today.
Midea, a leading electrical appliance conglomerate from China, announces its complete market penetration into Thailand today. In its latest campaign, the company will launch its “Fan” product group along with a sales promotion, where winners will get a free trip to Australia. “Midea”, a leading home electrical appliance conglomerate from China, announces its complete market penetration into Thailand today. In line with its announcement, the company will gear up its investment to develop its “Fan” market to enhance its position as the No.1 Fan Manufacturer in the World. Given its superior motor technology offering durability, beauty, design and energy saving, the company will launch 10 new models with a special campaign.
Mr. Shao Bin, Marketing Manager of Midea Trading (Thailand) Co., Ltd., the manufacturer and distributor of Midea branded home electrical appliance from China, discloses the company’s 2009 directions and strategies in Thailand today that after having successfully operated in Thailand for more than 5 years and officially announcing its presence in late 2008, despite a good response and higher brand recognition in the Thai home electrical appliance market, the company will unceasingly expand its marketing channels as well as untiringly improve its products to better answer to the needs of the Thai people.
Though it is expected that the home electrical appliance market in Thailand will experience lower purchasing power and post a total market value of approximately 35 billion Baht in 2008 & Q1 of 2009 due to economical as well as political stalemate; over the past year, Midea Group has held a promotion to stimulate the market and increasingly invested in its R&D activities in its “Fan” product group so that they achieve good quality products able to level with international standards and, most importantly, able to answer to the needs of its target groups.
As the Thai electrical fan market enjoys high market growth and is highly competitive at the same time, the company will introduce 10 new Midea electrical fans in this summer to differentiate itself from the market. All Midea fans are unique with its modern motor technology. As the World’s top fan manufacturer with an annual output of 30 million units today, the market could be confident that all Midea fans will outstandingly offer safety, durability, beauty, affordability and energy saving. In its latest sales promotion campaign, which is expected to generate a sale of 30,000 units, the company has offered a chance for those who purchase Midea fans to win a free trip to
Australia. This campaign starts today till June 15, 2009 and is available at Makro, Carrefour and other modern electrical appliance outlets nationwide. Currently the company has a total capacity of 300,000 of which will be marketed in Thailand, while 600,000 of which will be marketed abroad, e.g. Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia.
Midea’s core products include induction cooker, rice cooker, microwave oven, water dispenser and fan. Out of the Midea Group’s sales of approximately US$10 billion, the 2008 sales in Thailand was at US$2 million, while the 2008 Asean sales (including Thailand) was at US$20 million. On a group level, it is expected that the Group will enjoy a growth of 20%, while the Thai sales will double to around US$5 million (Approx: 175 million Baht). This is due mainly to its aggressive production expansion strategy to cover 40 models in 13-15 product groups, e.g. microwave oven, gas stove, water heater and hobs, while maintaining its strength by setting its prices 5-10% lower than international brands.
Besides fans, Midea will continuously add new products to penetrate the Thai electrical appliance market. Core products in the local market will include rice cooker, microwave oven, water dispenser and, especially, induction cooker, which the company enjoys more than 50% market share today. On top of all these, the company also has a plan to launch new products, e.g. gas stove, water heater, etc. Currently the company has marketed more than 30 Midea models in 10 product groups and more will definitely be seen throughout the second half of this year.
Mr. Shao Bin, Marketing Manager of Midea Trading (Thailand) Co., Ltd., the manufacturer and distributor of Midea branded home electrical appliance from China, discloses the company’s 2009 directions and strategies in Thailand today that after having successfully operated in Thailand for more than 5 years and officially announcing its presence in late 2008, despite a good response and higher brand recognition in the Thai home electrical appliance market, the company will unceasingly expand its marketing channels as well as untiringly improve its products to better answer to the needs of the Thai people.
Though it is expected that the home electrical appliance market in Thailand will experience lower purchasing power and post a total market value of approximately 35 billion Baht in 2008 & Q1 of 2009 due to economical as well as political stalemate; over the past year, Midea Group has held a promotion to stimulate the market and increasingly invested in its R&D activities in its “Fan” product group so that they achieve good quality products able to level with international standards and, most importantly, able to answer to the needs of its target groups.
As the Thai electrical fan market enjoys high market growth and is highly competitive at the same time, the company will introduce 10 new Midea electrical fans in this summer to differentiate itself from the market. All Midea fans are unique with its modern motor technology. As the World’s top fan manufacturer with an annual output of 30 million units today, the market could be confident that all Midea fans will outstandingly offer safety, durability, beauty, affordability and energy saving. In its latest sales promotion campaign, which is expected to generate a sale of 30,000 units, the company has offered a chance for those who purchase Midea fans to win a free trip to
Australia. This campaign starts today till June 15, 2009 and is available at Makro, Carrefour and other modern electrical appliance outlets nationwide. Currently the company has a total capacity of 300,000 of which will be marketed in Thailand, while 600,000 of which will be marketed abroad, e.g. Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia.
Midea’s core products include induction cooker, rice cooker, microwave oven, water dispenser and fan. Out of the Midea Group’s sales of approximately US$10 billion, the 2008 sales in Thailand was at US$2 million, while the 2008 Asean sales (including Thailand) was at US$20 million. On a group level, it is expected that the Group will enjoy a growth of 20%, while the Thai sales will double to around US$5 million (Approx: 175 million Baht). This is due mainly to its aggressive production expansion strategy to cover 40 models in 13-15 product groups, e.g. microwave oven, gas stove, water heater and hobs, while maintaining its strength by setting its prices 5-10% lower than international brands.
Besides fans, Midea will continuously add new products to penetrate the Thai electrical appliance market. Core products in the local market will include rice cooker, microwave oven, water dispenser and, especially, induction cooker, which the company enjoys more than 50% market share today. On top of all these, the company also has a plan to launch new products, e.g. gas stove, water heater, etc. Currently the company has marketed more than 30 Midea models in 10 product groups and more will definitely be seen throughout the second half of this year.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Techwell Introduces Two Multi-Channel Video Decoder Solutions
TW6864, TW6868 Respond to Increased Demand for More
Integrated ICs for the Software Compression PC DVR Cards Used
in Security Surveillance Applications
Techwell, Inc. (Nasdaq:TWLL), a leading designer of mixed signal video semiconductor solutions for the security surveillance, automotive, and consumer electronics markets, today announced two multi-channel video capture products, the TW6864 and the TW6868. These devices feature Techwell's premium quality 4-in-1 video decoder technology -- which has the best weak signal performance in the industry, four high-performance audio ADCs, and an integrated PCI Express interface. This high level of integration simplifies the PC DVR card hardware design and reduces production costs.
Demonstrated at the CPSE show in Shenzhen, China earlier this week, the TW6864 and TW6868 take advantage of the significantly faster speed and overall larger data bandwidth of the PCI Express interface -- a feature in high demand for security surveillance systems utilizing a software compression PC DVR card.
The TW6864 and TW6868 support both real time and non-real time video and can output multiple video resolutions including D1, half D1, and CIF, providing maximum application flexibility. Techwell's proprietary video locking technology enables a non-real time switching speed that is faster than competitive products, allowing for the highest possible frame rate per channel. In addition, both ICs contain a high-performance proprietary DMA controller that fully utilizes the PCIe x1 bandwidth, enabling video and audio data transfer at an optimal throughput rate.
The TW6864 can decode and transfer four channels of real time D1 video (up to 16 channels of non-real time video) and four channels of audio. In comparison, the TW6868 can be cascaded with an external Techwell 4-in-1 decoder such as the TW2865 to achieve eight channels of real time D1 video and 9 channels of audio. In non-real time mode, the TW6868 (when combined with TW2865) can support up to 24 channels of video.
"The PCIe bus is becoming the dominant interface on the PC motherboard. Fortunately, the TW6864 and TW6868 provide a versatile and scalable solution for the software compression PC DVR card market," said David Nam, Techwell's VP of sales and marketing. "Techwell has set the precedent for highly integrated front-end surveillance video semiconductor solutions since 2001 and these two new video decoder solutions demonstrate why we continue to be the market leader."
About Techwell, Inc.
Techwell is a semiconductor company that designs, markets and sells mixed signal integrated circuits for multiple video applications in the security surveillance, automotive and consumer electronics markets. Techwell designs both general purpose and application specific products that enable the conversion of analog video signals to digital form and perform advanced digital video processing to facilitate the display, storage and transport of video content. Headquartered in San Jose, Calif., Techwell currently has more than 200 employees in the U.S., Korea, Taiwan, China and Japan. More information is available at http://www.techwellinc.com
Integrated ICs for the Software Compression PC DVR Cards Used
in Security Surveillance Applications
Techwell, Inc. (Nasdaq:TWLL), a leading designer of mixed signal video semiconductor solutions for the security surveillance, automotive, and consumer electronics markets, today announced two multi-channel video capture products, the TW6864 and the TW6868. These devices feature Techwell's premium quality 4-in-1 video decoder technology -- which has the best weak signal performance in the industry, four high-performance audio ADCs, and an integrated PCI Express interface. This high level of integration simplifies the PC DVR card hardware design and reduces production costs.
Demonstrated at the CPSE show in Shenzhen, China earlier this week, the TW6864 and TW6868 take advantage of the significantly faster speed and overall larger data bandwidth of the PCI Express interface -- a feature in high demand for security surveillance systems utilizing a software compression PC DVR card.
The TW6864 and TW6868 support both real time and non-real time video and can output multiple video resolutions including D1, half D1, and CIF, providing maximum application flexibility. Techwell's proprietary video locking technology enables a non-real time switching speed that is faster than competitive products, allowing for the highest possible frame rate per channel. In addition, both ICs contain a high-performance proprietary DMA controller that fully utilizes the PCIe x1 bandwidth, enabling video and audio data transfer at an optimal throughput rate.
The TW6864 can decode and transfer four channels of real time D1 video (up to 16 channels of non-real time video) and four channels of audio. In comparison, the TW6868 can be cascaded with an external Techwell 4-in-1 decoder such as the TW2865 to achieve eight channels of real time D1 video and 9 channels of audio. In non-real time mode, the TW6868 (when combined with TW2865) can support up to 24 channels of video.
"The PCIe bus is becoming the dominant interface on the PC motherboard. Fortunately, the TW6864 and TW6868 provide a versatile and scalable solution for the software compression PC DVR card market," said David Nam, Techwell's VP of sales and marketing. "Techwell has set the precedent for highly integrated front-end surveillance video semiconductor solutions since 2001 and these two new video decoder solutions demonstrate why we continue to be the market leader."
About Techwell, Inc.
Techwell is a semiconductor company that designs, markets and sells mixed signal integrated circuits for multiple video applications in the security surveillance, automotive and consumer electronics markets. Techwell designs both general purpose and application specific products that enable the conversion of analog video signals to digital form and perform advanced digital video processing to facilitate the display, storage and transport of video content. Headquartered in San Jose, Calif., Techwell currently has more than 200 employees in the U.S., Korea, Taiwan, China and Japan. More information is available at http://www.techwellinc.com
Thursday, November 12, 2009
TURNING LG INTO A MARKETING-DRIVEN LEADER
Dermot JM Boden, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of LG Electronics, told Kwanchai Rungfapaisarn about his strategic mission to make LG the No-1 brand in the world. "My personal mission is to make LG the best marketing company in the world and to make LG the No-1 brand in terms of sales, brand health, image perception and awareness," said Boden, who joined South Korea's LG Electronics two years ago as head of marketing.
He said the key elements were to focus on building the LG brand, as well as the customer service and market research functions.
"I will enhance marketing programmes, some from my office and the others through our local subsidiaries. We have a clear desire and aspiration to be No 1 in terms of sales and brand. We want to promote emotional attachment so that consumers think of LG as part of their family," said Boden.
He added that LG Electronics had created a human-face logo to nurture the brand identity as enhancing the emotional connection with consumers.
"We want to build real connection and loyalty in consumers by bringing products that are the best of design and technology and that enrich their life," he said.
"My strategy is common [to all parts of the organisation]. Everything we do is done to build the brand," said Boden.
He said the products themselves had a very short selling cycle. Telephones, for instance, are on the market for only six months, and it is a couple of years for televisions, refrigerators and washing machines.
These products make the brand and the brand will last forever, said Boden, adding that the brand needs to be consistent and continuous so that consumers feel the same message and value.
"We build the brand through our products and services, through our marketing programmes, advertising, digital, in-store media, event and marketing partnerships. We want to build our brand and allow people to feel our brand as aspirational and worthy of premium pricing," he said.
He added that LG targeted consumers who want the best they can afford and were willing to pay for it. "We do a lot of market research into consumer behaviour and usage of the products, which differ from market to market," said Boden.
He gave the example of Bangkok and upcountry Thailand, where the sizes of houses are different - and this drives the need for refrigerators and washing machines of different sizes as well.
In South Korea, the company developed the Kimji refrigerator by focusing on how to keep the appliances fresh and odourless. The refrigerator fit very well with local consumer behaviour. Having been in the market for about 10 years, the Kimji range has strong penetration with 80 per cent of households owning one of the refrigerators.
"We are working very hard to get consumer insights. We rely on local insights and consumer knowledge, particularly in major markets such as Thailand, Indonesia, India and China in this region. We bring those local insights back to Korea to develop products that are good for specific markets," he said.
Boden said Thailand, for example, was a "young" country. The company is building a relationship with young Thai consumers through its electronic products such as mobile phones and televisions. Customer service is very important in building the brand and communicating with Thai consumers.
"There are many things we can learn from Thailand and then expand those best practices to other markets around the world," he said.
Boden identifies with the "3C" marketing principles, which are consistency, continuity and creativity - particularly local creativity.
He feels a great challenge in making LG Electronics a leading global marketing-driven company.
He said LG was a large company with 82,000 people, and annual sales close to US$50 billion (Bt1.66 trillion).
"We're a very young brand at only 15 years old. We have transformed ourselves from a manufacturing, research and development and trading company into a marketing-driven firm in just the last two to three years. That's a different business model for us.
"So now, we're focusing our effort behind the brand and understanding consumers. LG is becoming a very global English-speaking company. All of these changes are challenges, but hopefully they will make us even stronger," said Boden.
He said the key elements were to focus on building the LG brand, as well as the customer service and market research functions.
"I will enhance marketing programmes, some from my office and the others through our local subsidiaries. We have a clear desire and aspiration to be No 1 in terms of sales and brand. We want to promote emotional attachment so that consumers think of LG as part of their family," said Boden.
He added that LG Electronics had created a human-face logo to nurture the brand identity as enhancing the emotional connection with consumers.
"We want to build real connection and loyalty in consumers by bringing products that are the best of design and technology and that enrich their life," he said.
"My strategy is common [to all parts of the organisation]. Everything we do is done to build the brand," said Boden.
He said the products themselves had a very short selling cycle. Telephones, for instance, are on the market for only six months, and it is a couple of years for televisions, refrigerators and washing machines.
These products make the brand and the brand will last forever, said Boden, adding that the brand needs to be consistent and continuous so that consumers feel the same message and value.
"We build the brand through our products and services, through our marketing programmes, advertising, digital, in-store media, event and marketing partnerships. We want to build our brand and allow people to feel our brand as aspirational and worthy of premium pricing," he said.
He added that LG targeted consumers who want the best they can afford and were willing to pay for it. "We do a lot of market research into consumer behaviour and usage of the products, which differ from market to market," said Boden.
He gave the example of Bangkok and upcountry Thailand, where the sizes of houses are different - and this drives the need for refrigerators and washing machines of different sizes as well.
In South Korea, the company developed the Kimji refrigerator by focusing on how to keep the appliances fresh and odourless. The refrigerator fit very well with local consumer behaviour. Having been in the market for about 10 years, the Kimji range has strong penetration with 80 per cent of households owning one of the refrigerators.
"We are working very hard to get consumer insights. We rely on local insights and consumer knowledge, particularly in major markets such as Thailand, Indonesia, India and China in this region. We bring those local insights back to Korea to develop products that are good for specific markets," he said.
Boden said Thailand, for example, was a "young" country. The company is building a relationship with young Thai consumers through its electronic products such as mobile phones and televisions. Customer service is very important in building the brand and communicating with Thai consumers.
"There are many things we can learn from Thailand and then expand those best practices to other markets around the world," he said.
Boden identifies with the "3C" marketing principles, which are consistency, continuity and creativity - particularly local creativity.
He feels a great challenge in making LG Electronics a leading global marketing-driven company.
He said LG was a large company with 82,000 people, and annual sales close to US$50 billion (Bt1.66 trillion).
"We're a very young brand at only 15 years old. We have transformed ourselves from a manufacturing, research and development and trading company into a marketing-driven firm in just the last two to three years. That's a different business model for us.
"So now, we're focusing our effort behind the brand and understanding consumers. LG is becoming a very global English-speaking company. All of these changes are challenges, but hopefully they will make us even stronger," said Boden.
Solar lanterns light the way
For more than 100 Indian villages cut off from the electricity grid, life no longer comes to an end after dark thanks to an innovative solar-powered lantern that offers hope to the nation's rural poor.
While cooking, farming and studying after sunset were once a struggle using inefficient kerosene or paraffin lamps, the solar lantern now provides a cheap and practical source of light.
The simple device, which is charged during the day from a communal rooftop solar panel,uses between five and seven watts of power and has a battery that lasts up to eight hours.
It also boasts a socket for charging mobile phones and a hand crank for topping up the power.
Villagers pay between 3 and 6 rupees (2 to 4 baht) a day to rent the lantern under the "Lighting a Billion Lives"(LaBL) scheme, which was launched last year to promote solar energy as the environmentally friendly answer to India's energy shortages.
"I keep my shop open as late as 9pm. All my fish get sold by that time," a fish seller in Govindorampur district in West Bengal state who uses the lamp told researchers.
He is one of those whose lives have been transformed by the first wave of 5,000 lanterns distributed across nine states in India.
The LaBL scheme, run by The Energy and Resources Institute (Teri) in New Delhi, plans to eventually put 200 million lamps into use.
Organisers say each lamp should work for 10 years, saving between 500 and 600 litres of kerosene which would produce about 1.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Government figures show more than 10,000 impoverished Indian villages have no access to grid electricity, but the solar revolution could also change middle-class lives in urban India,where energy demands have soared.
Power cuts are common even in the smarter suburbs of New Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata as residents soak up fragile supplies with airconditioning units, freezers and washing machines.
While per capita electricity use in India -704 kilowatt hours in 2007-2008- is far lower than the 8,000 kilowatt hours per capita in many industrialised countries, there is no sign of consumption slowing.
"There is something like 30 percent overdemand. There's significant undergeneration as it is, even if you don't electrify any more," said Joel Slonetsky, a researcher with LaBL.
One "green" solution to the outages is a solar-charged inverter for backup electricity during cuts.
"People have started realising the scarcity of power," said Chandra Sekhar, CEO of Solar India Solutions, which sells the inverters in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh."They have become scared so they don't mind spending a little extra."
Sekhar said most of his clients belong to the "domestic middle-income group" and they choose to shell out between $3,000 to $6,000 for the solar inverters that work as well as traditional ones.
"Right now the technology is at a stage where we can say that it stands side by side with conventional electricity," said Ajay Prakash Shrivastava, president of the Solar Energy Society of India.
Increased efficiency and new materials mean the price of solar-powered equipment has been coming down for years, although initial installation costs are steep, said Shrivastava.
While the long-term benefits may be an incentive for some, he acknowledged that most people who have opted to use solar energy have done so out of necessity rather than a desire to be environmentally friendly.
"There are certainly people thinking in that direction," said Shrivastava."But that group is not very large."
Slonetsky said although the Indian solar industry is constantly evolving, the options for domestic solar power use are still somewhat limited.
"It may just be a lag both in terms of consumer awareness and supply here." he said.
It is certainly not for lack of sunshine India receives a high level of solar radiation,equivalent to more than 5,000 trillion kilowatts or up to 3,200 hours of sun a year, according to government statistics.
The government hopes to harness this potential into 20,000 megawatts of solar power by 2020 as part of its National Solar Mission to promote renewable energy.
The plan envisions railway signals and water pumps eventually running on solar technology,but for now, villagers are content with the portable lamps that have made daily tasks such as cooking and cleaning easier.
"The lanterns have changed our position in society," said Ayesha Begum from Sahsoul village in the eastern state of Bihar.
While cooking, farming and studying after sunset were once a struggle using inefficient kerosene or paraffin lamps, the solar lantern now provides a cheap and practical source of light.
The simple device, which is charged during the day from a communal rooftop solar panel,uses between five and seven watts of power and has a battery that lasts up to eight hours.
It also boasts a socket for charging mobile phones and a hand crank for topping up the power.
Villagers pay between 3 and 6 rupees (2 to 4 baht) a day to rent the lantern under the "Lighting a Billion Lives"(LaBL) scheme, which was launched last year to promote solar energy as the environmentally friendly answer to India's energy shortages.
"I keep my shop open as late as 9pm. All my fish get sold by that time," a fish seller in Govindorampur district in West Bengal state who uses the lamp told researchers.
He is one of those whose lives have been transformed by the first wave of 5,000 lanterns distributed across nine states in India.
The LaBL scheme, run by The Energy and Resources Institute (Teri) in New Delhi, plans to eventually put 200 million lamps into use.
Organisers say each lamp should work for 10 years, saving between 500 and 600 litres of kerosene which would produce about 1.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Government figures show more than 10,000 impoverished Indian villages have no access to grid electricity, but the solar revolution could also change middle-class lives in urban India,where energy demands have soared.
Power cuts are common even in the smarter suburbs of New Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata as residents soak up fragile supplies with airconditioning units, freezers and washing machines.
While per capita electricity use in India -704 kilowatt hours in 2007-2008- is far lower than the 8,000 kilowatt hours per capita in many industrialised countries, there is no sign of consumption slowing.
"There is something like 30 percent overdemand. There's significant undergeneration as it is, even if you don't electrify any more," said Joel Slonetsky, a researcher with LaBL.
One "green" solution to the outages is a solar-charged inverter for backup electricity during cuts.
"People have started realising the scarcity of power," said Chandra Sekhar, CEO of Solar India Solutions, which sells the inverters in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh."They have become scared so they don't mind spending a little extra."
Sekhar said most of his clients belong to the "domestic middle-income group" and they choose to shell out between $3,000 to $6,000 for the solar inverters that work as well as traditional ones.
"Right now the technology is at a stage where we can say that it stands side by side with conventional electricity," said Ajay Prakash Shrivastava, president of the Solar Energy Society of India.
Increased efficiency and new materials mean the price of solar-powered equipment has been coming down for years, although initial installation costs are steep, said Shrivastava.
While the long-term benefits may be an incentive for some, he acknowledged that most people who have opted to use solar energy have done so out of necessity rather than a desire to be environmentally friendly.
"There are certainly people thinking in that direction," said Shrivastava."But that group is not very large."
Slonetsky said although the Indian solar industry is constantly evolving, the options for domestic solar power use are still somewhat limited.
"It may just be a lag both in terms of consumer awareness and supply here." he said.
It is certainly not for lack of sunshine India receives a high level of solar radiation,equivalent to more than 5,000 trillion kilowatts or up to 3,200 hours of sun a year, according to government statistics.
The government hopes to harness this potential into 20,000 megawatts of solar power by 2020 as part of its National Solar Mission to promote renewable energy.
The plan envisions railway signals and water pumps eventually running on solar technology,but for now, villagers are content with the portable lamps that have made daily tasks such as cooking and cleaning easier.
"The lanterns have changed our position in society," said Ayesha Begum from Sahsoul village in the eastern state of Bihar.
SAMSUNG, LG KEEN TO PROMOTE SMART PHONES
LG Electronics' chief executive Nam Yong said that LG's main competition was not Nokia but smart-phone makers Apple and Research in Motion.
His remarks last week show how eager the No 3 handset maker is to raise its profile in the smartphone market.
LG suffered falling sales in North America, one of its key markets, in the third quarter because of the expansion of the smart-phone market led by Apple and Reserach in Motion.
Despite their leading positions in the handset industry, LG and it Korean rival Samsung Electronics have a limited profile in the rapidly growing smart phone market.
The two companies hold a combined share of less than 4 per cent in the global smart-phone market, even as their total share in the handset market tops 30 per cent, according to IDC and Shinhan Investment.
Some analysts said their failure to expand into the smart-phone market would limt their growth. The smart-phone market is expected to grow and account for 20 per cent of the handset market next year, from 16 per cent this year, according to Gartner and Shinhan Investment.
Korean handset makers are closely working with operators to boost their weak smart-phone sales and better compete with Nokia, Apple and Research in Motion. They have also launched smart phones powered by various operating systems including Windows Mobile and Android.
"Apple has its own smart-phone business model, which is not welcomed by wireless opeators," said Jay Yoo of Korea Investment & Securities.
"Samsung and LG have no choice but to cooperate with operators ... It is an inevitable choice, but not a bad one."
LG says it will spend heavily to develop competitive smart phones.
"We plan to release about 10 smart phones powered by Windows Mibile next year," an LG spokesperson said, adding that the company has not decided on how many smart phones it will roll out next year.
He said LG had previously focused on the Windows Mobile operating system, but that it is now focusing on both Windows Mobile and Google's Android operating system.
Samsung, the world's No 3 handset maket, also seeks to take on Apple and Research in Motion in the smart-phone market, in which the Korean company holds a 2.7-per-cent share.
Samsung has introduced a series of new Omina smart phones in September, and plans to double the number of its models next year.
His remarks last week show how eager the No 3 handset maker is to raise its profile in the smartphone market.
LG suffered falling sales in North America, one of its key markets, in the third quarter because of the expansion of the smart-phone market led by Apple and Reserach in Motion.
Despite their leading positions in the handset industry, LG and it Korean rival Samsung Electronics have a limited profile in the rapidly growing smart phone market.
The two companies hold a combined share of less than 4 per cent in the global smart-phone market, even as their total share in the handset market tops 30 per cent, according to IDC and Shinhan Investment.
Some analysts said their failure to expand into the smart-phone market would limt their growth. The smart-phone market is expected to grow and account for 20 per cent of the handset market next year, from 16 per cent this year, according to Gartner and Shinhan Investment.
Korean handset makers are closely working with operators to boost their weak smart-phone sales and better compete with Nokia, Apple and Research in Motion. They have also launched smart phones powered by various operating systems including Windows Mobile and Android.
"Apple has its own smart-phone business model, which is not welcomed by wireless opeators," said Jay Yoo of Korea Investment & Securities.
"Samsung and LG have no choice but to cooperate with operators ... It is an inevitable choice, but not a bad one."
LG says it will spend heavily to develop competitive smart phones.
"We plan to release about 10 smart phones powered by Windows Mibile next year," an LG spokesperson said, adding that the company has not decided on how many smart phones it will roll out next year.
He said LG had previously focused on the Windows Mobile operating system, but that it is now focusing on both Windows Mobile and Google's Android operating system.
Samsung, the world's No 3 handset maket, also seeks to take on Apple and Research in Motion in the smart-phone market, in which the Korean company holds a 2.7-per-cent share.
Samsung has introduced a series of new Omina smart phones in September, and plans to double the number of its models next year.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
PANASONIC BEGINS TENDER OFFER TO BUY SANYO
Panasonic said yesterday it has begun a tender offer to take over smaller rival Sanyo Electric for an estimated 402 billion yen (Bt150 billion), moving loser to create one of the world's biggest electronics makers.
Panasonic, the world's biggest plasma TV maker,is expected to purchase more than 50 per cent of Sanyo shares, hoping to take advantage of the smaller rival's green businesses in solar panels and rechargeable batteries.
Panasonic spokesman Akira Kadota said the tender offer is planned for Nove,ber 5 through December 7 at the price of yen 131 per share.
Sanyo's three major shareholders, Goldman Sachas, Daiwa Securities SMBC and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, have agreed to sell at least a combined 3.07 billion shares to Panasonic at the per-share price, which guarantees the Osaka-based company to take majority stake in Sanyo.
The three shareholders tog4ther control about 70 per cent of Sanyo's total about 70 per cent of Sanyo's total outstanding shares.
Panasonic has said earlier it hoped to purchase up to all of Sanyo's shares,but the company is largely expected to have to settle with the minimum controlling stake, as other shasre holders are unlikely to want to sell theirs, with half of the market level.
Kadota said that Sanyo is expected to become Panasonic's subsidiary by mid-December, a year after the two companies announced the buy out deal.
The tender offer had been delayed by several months as Panasonic had to wait for clearance from antimonopoly authorities in the US, China and the European Union to go ahead with the takeover.
Panasonic, the world's biggest plasma TV maker,is expected to purchase more than 50 per cent of Sanyo shares, hoping to take advantage of the smaller rival's green businesses in solar panels and rechargeable batteries.
Panasonic spokesman Akira Kadota said the tender offer is planned for Nove,ber 5 through December 7 at the price of yen 131 per share.
Sanyo's three major shareholders, Goldman Sachas, Daiwa Securities SMBC and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, have agreed to sell at least a combined 3.07 billion shares to Panasonic at the per-share price, which guarantees the Osaka-based company to take majority stake in Sanyo.
The three shareholders tog4ther control about 70 per cent of Sanyo's total about 70 per cent of Sanyo's total outstanding shares.
Panasonic has said earlier it hoped to purchase up to all of Sanyo's shares,but the company is largely expected to have to settle with the minimum controlling stake, as other shasre holders are unlikely to want to sell theirs, with half of the market level.
Kadota said that Sanyo is expected to become Panasonic's subsidiary by mid-December, a year after the two companies announced the buy out deal.
The tender offer had been delayed by several months as Panasonic had to wait for clearance from antimonopoly authorities in the US, China and the European Union to go ahead with the takeover.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
PANASONIC UNVEILS PRODUCT STRATEGY
Electronics giant Panasonic has elaborated three key concepts that will guide its product development from now on.
President Fumio Ohtsubo recently said his firm believed the three concepts - "Eco Living", "Connected Living" and "Living with Peace of Mind and Safety" - encapsulate the major consumer trends of the foreseeable future and that developing products in line with these trends would ensure steady growth and boost profitability in the long term.
In particular, the "Eco" concept will be central to all of Panasonic's activities from now on, he said. As a result, developing ecofriendly electrical appliances is the firm's long-term priority.
The focus on these three areas was motivated by the need to keep up with consumers' changing lifestyles and a desire to conduct Panasonic's business in a socially responsible way, Ohtsubo said.
Between now and 2020, the percentage of households in Panasonic's major markets is expected to rise dramatically, the president said, with the epicentre of this growth being the BRIC markets (Brazil, Russia, India and China).
Another important factor for Panasonic is the increasing proportion of older consumers in major markets, said Ohtsubo, citing a UN estimate that the proportion of Japanese people aged 65 and above would increase from 20 per cent in 2005 to 38 per cent in 2050. The proportion of Japan's population aged 15-64 will decline from 66 per cent to 51 per cent in the same period and that of people aged below 14 from 14 per cent to 11 per cent.
The so-called greying of the population is also an issue in Germany, France, China and the US, Ohtsubo said.
"We have to develop products from the customer's perspective. Consumers in each region have different needs and tastes. Our challenge is finding ways to make appliances they really want," he said.
The "Eco Living" guidelines require that products save energy, create energy and store energy. At the CEATEC Japan 2009 exhibition held recently at Makuhari Messe in Chiba City, near Tokyo, Panasonic displayed its Intelligent Home Energy Management System, which showcased the firm's latest technologies developed to save, create and store energy in the home.
Panasonic now sells 96 appliances deemed to be "energy-saving products", but all of its products are developed with an eye to reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, Ohtsubo said, adding that Panasonic had set its own emissions-reduction targets in each product category.
A total of 296 Panasonic products were certified as Superior Green Products in fiscal 2008, ended this past March 31. By the end of that fiscal year, the firm had reduced its CO2 emissions 65 per cent from the 1990 level.
Ohtsubo said another technology Panasonic was developing was the Advanced Video Motion Detector (AVMD), the world's most advanced tracking technology for use in security and behaviour-analysis systems. Among its functions, AVMD automatically detects intruders or the abandonment of packages or other possibly suspicious items in a particular location. The technology is aimed at enabling immediate responses to and prevention of accidents and crimes.
Panasonic is also developing life-assisting robots designed to assist the elderly, both in hospitals and households. The robots are expected to enter the market soon, Ohtsubo said.
Along with developing products, Panasonic is gradually updating its brand image to make it more fashionable, in order to better compete with other brands.Takumi Kajisha, managing executive officer in charge of corporate communications, said that since changing its name from Matsushita Electric Industrial last year, Panasonic had allocated a large budget to advertising its products worldwide, setting aside ?175 billion (Bt65.5 billion) for that purpose.
The figure represents less than 10 per cent of Panasonic's total global sales. The advertising budget is expected to decline next year, Kajisha said.
"Panasonic has been in the appliance market for a long time. We need to build recognition among consumers worldwide that we're still developing and manufacturing [cutting-edge] appliances," he said.
Hitoshi Otsuki, senior managing director, said this had been a tough year for Panasonic, as the strong yen had affected the company's competitiveness. Nevertheless, the firm expects revenue worldwide to increase at a double-digit rate next fiscal year (starting April 2010).
"Currently, the yen is 25 to 30 per cent stronger than it was a year ago. This has reduced our competitiveness relative to other brands, such as those from South Korea, by 25 to 30 per cent, as well. However, Panasonic isn't overly worried about this problem. The yen's value changes cyclically ... We expect the yen to begin weakening in the near future," he said.
President Fumio Ohtsubo recently said his firm believed the three concepts - "Eco Living", "Connected Living" and "Living with Peace of Mind and Safety" - encapsulate the major consumer trends of the foreseeable future and that developing products in line with these trends would ensure steady growth and boost profitability in the long term.
In particular, the "Eco" concept will be central to all of Panasonic's activities from now on, he said. As a result, developing ecofriendly electrical appliances is the firm's long-term priority.
The focus on these three areas was motivated by the need to keep up with consumers' changing lifestyles and a desire to conduct Panasonic's business in a socially responsible way, Ohtsubo said.
Between now and 2020, the percentage of households in Panasonic's major markets is expected to rise dramatically, the president said, with the epicentre of this growth being the BRIC markets (Brazil, Russia, India and China).
Another important factor for Panasonic is the increasing proportion of older consumers in major markets, said Ohtsubo, citing a UN estimate that the proportion of Japanese people aged 65 and above would increase from 20 per cent in 2005 to 38 per cent in 2050. The proportion of Japan's population aged 15-64 will decline from 66 per cent to 51 per cent in the same period and that of people aged below 14 from 14 per cent to 11 per cent.
The so-called greying of the population is also an issue in Germany, France, China and the US, Ohtsubo said.
"We have to develop products from the customer's perspective. Consumers in each region have different needs and tastes. Our challenge is finding ways to make appliances they really want," he said.
The "Eco Living" guidelines require that products save energy, create energy and store energy. At the CEATEC Japan 2009 exhibition held recently at Makuhari Messe in Chiba City, near Tokyo, Panasonic displayed its Intelligent Home Energy Management System, which showcased the firm's latest technologies developed to save, create and store energy in the home.
Panasonic now sells 96 appliances deemed to be "energy-saving products", but all of its products are developed with an eye to reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, Ohtsubo said, adding that Panasonic had set its own emissions-reduction targets in each product category.
A total of 296 Panasonic products were certified as Superior Green Products in fiscal 2008, ended this past March 31. By the end of that fiscal year, the firm had reduced its CO2 emissions 65 per cent from the 1990 level.
Ohtsubo said another technology Panasonic was developing was the Advanced Video Motion Detector (AVMD), the world's most advanced tracking technology for use in security and behaviour-analysis systems. Among its functions, AVMD automatically detects intruders or the abandonment of packages or other possibly suspicious items in a particular location. The technology is aimed at enabling immediate responses to and prevention of accidents and crimes.
Panasonic is also developing life-assisting robots designed to assist the elderly, both in hospitals and households. The robots are expected to enter the market soon, Ohtsubo said.
Along with developing products, Panasonic is gradually updating its brand image to make it more fashionable, in order to better compete with other brands.Takumi Kajisha, managing executive officer in charge of corporate communications, said that since changing its name from Matsushita Electric Industrial last year, Panasonic had allocated a large budget to advertising its products worldwide, setting aside ?175 billion (Bt65.5 billion) for that purpose.
The figure represents less than 10 per cent of Panasonic's total global sales. The advertising budget is expected to decline next year, Kajisha said.
"Panasonic has been in the appliance market for a long time. We need to build recognition among consumers worldwide that we're still developing and manufacturing [cutting-edge] appliances," he said.
Hitoshi Otsuki, senior managing director, said this had been a tough year for Panasonic, as the strong yen had affected the company's competitiveness. Nevertheless, the firm expects revenue worldwide to increase at a double-digit rate next fiscal year (starting April 2010).
"Currently, the yen is 25 to 30 per cent stronger than it was a year ago. This has reduced our competitiveness relative to other brands, such as those from South Korea, by 25 to 30 per cent, as well. However, Panasonic isn't overly worried about this problem. The yen's value changes cyclically ... We expect the yen to begin weakening in the near future," he said.
Thai Samsung invests B4bn
Thai Samsung Electronics Co, the leading consumer electronics manufacturer and distributor, plans to spend 4 billion baht to increase the production capacity of its audio-visual and home appliances in Thailand next year.
The budget will be used to install new machines and moulds for its five main product lines: televisions, air conditioners, front-loading washing machines, two-door refrigerators and kitchen products. Thai Samsung did not disclose the additional production capacity but the new investment will create 500 to 1,000 new jobs at the company's factory in Si Racha district, Chon Buri.
Arnut Changtrakul, deputy managing director of Thai Samsung Electronics,said the new investment is a response to improving demand in both export and domestic markets, where sales of all electrical appliances have clearly risen since August.
"This is in line with the projection of GDP growth at 1.5% in the fourth quarter of this year and 3% to 4% in the first quarter of next year. Also, the US expects its GDP next year will rise by 3% to 3.5%next year," he said.
Samsung expects its domestic sales next year will rise by 50% to US$1.5 billion while export sales will rise to $1.6 billion from $1.3 billion this year.
The main products driving sales next year are expected to include LED TVs,computer notebooks, digital cameras,front-loading washing machines and airconditioners. For these products Samsung is currently ranked between No.2 and No.4 in the Thai market.
"Overall sales for Samsung here will reach 80 billion baht in 2010, up from 500 million baht since its inception in 1988. Next we aim to become the market leader for all product categories we produce here step-by-step," said Mr Arnut.
The company currently leads in 11 electrical product categories such as LED TVs, PDP TVs, side-by-side refrigerators and microwave ovens. It is expected to be No.1 in the Thai mobile phone market by the end of this year.
The budget will be used to install new machines and moulds for its five main product lines: televisions, air conditioners, front-loading washing machines, two-door refrigerators and kitchen products. Thai Samsung did not disclose the additional production capacity but the new investment will create 500 to 1,000 new jobs at the company's factory in Si Racha district, Chon Buri.
Arnut Changtrakul, deputy managing director of Thai Samsung Electronics,said the new investment is a response to improving demand in both export and domestic markets, where sales of all electrical appliances have clearly risen since August.
"This is in line with the projection of GDP growth at 1.5% in the fourth quarter of this year and 3% to 4% in the first quarter of next year. Also, the US expects its GDP next year will rise by 3% to 3.5%next year," he said.
Samsung expects its domestic sales next year will rise by 50% to US$1.5 billion while export sales will rise to $1.6 billion from $1.3 billion this year.
The main products driving sales next year are expected to include LED TVs,computer notebooks, digital cameras,front-loading washing machines and airconditioners. For these products Samsung is currently ranked between No.2 and No.4 in the Thai market.
"Overall sales for Samsung here will reach 80 billion baht in 2010, up from 500 million baht since its inception in 1988. Next we aim to become the market leader for all product categories we produce here step-by-step," said Mr Arnut.
The company currently leads in 11 electrical product categories such as LED TVs, PDP TVs, side-by-side refrigerators and microwave ovens. It is expected to be No.1 in the Thai mobile phone market by the end of this year.
Fill me up, put me down
Stuck in the middle of nowhere?No problem, just make sure you take Toshiba's new Dynario along. Fuelled by concentrated methanol, the Dynario can recharge your BlackBerry, iphone or ipod. The direct methanlo fuel cell battery delivers a charge methanol fuel cell battery delivers a charge via the USB jport and comes with a methanol cartridge for easy refuelling. It went on sale last Thursday through the company's Japanese direct-order websit. Shop 1048.jp.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
LG makes Thailand LED TV base
The South Korean electronics giant LG has chosen Thailand as the first Asean production base for its latest range of televisions.
The company will spend about 200 million baht next year on molds, a clean room and other facilities at its Rayong factory to produce the LED and LCD sets locally, said Heegol Lee, general marketing manager for home entertainment at LG Electronics (Thailand) Co.
Exports will account for about 25% of total output. The Thai-made products will initially be shipped to Laos, Cambodia and Burma.
Another 340 million baht will be spent locally next year on promoting LG televisions, with a focus on LCD sets.
Overall demand for the brand's televisions in Thailand this year is estimated at about 3.2 million sets, or 32 billion baht, said Alongkorn Chujit, deputy managing director of LG Electronics (Thailand). LCD sets account for about one million sets, or 19 billion baht, followed by 65,000 plasma sets worth 23 billion baht, with other technologies accounting for the remaining 11 billion baht.
Overall demand for televisions shrank by 4.3% over the first eight months of the year. But demand for plasma TVs grew by 40% in the period and the LCD segment surged by 80%, while demand for conventional and flat-screen sets slid.
Sales of LG LCD sets increased by 80% over the period.
LED units currently account for just 2% of sales, but this is forecast to rise to 20% next year.
The company will spend 80 million baht promoting LED and LCD products,said managing director Hyun Woo Lee.
The new LED TV should lift the company's market share of the LCD TV segment to 25% by the year-end, up from 21% last year. The company aims to sell 3,000 units over the next three months.
The two new products in the LG Live Borderless TV range are priced at 32,990 and 109,990 baht.
It expects overall sales this year will grow by 15% to 15 billion baht.
The company will spend about 200 million baht next year on molds, a clean room and other facilities at its Rayong factory to produce the LED and LCD sets locally, said Heegol Lee, general marketing manager for home entertainment at LG Electronics (Thailand) Co.
Exports will account for about 25% of total output. The Thai-made products will initially be shipped to Laos, Cambodia and Burma.
Another 340 million baht will be spent locally next year on promoting LG televisions, with a focus on LCD sets.
Overall demand for the brand's televisions in Thailand this year is estimated at about 3.2 million sets, or 32 billion baht, said Alongkorn Chujit, deputy managing director of LG Electronics (Thailand). LCD sets account for about one million sets, or 19 billion baht, followed by 65,000 plasma sets worth 23 billion baht, with other technologies accounting for the remaining 11 billion baht.
Overall demand for televisions shrank by 4.3% over the first eight months of the year. But demand for plasma TVs grew by 40% in the period and the LCD segment surged by 80%, while demand for conventional and flat-screen sets slid.
Sales of LG LCD sets increased by 80% over the period.
LED units currently account for just 2% of sales, but this is forecast to rise to 20% next year.
The company will spend 80 million baht promoting LED and LCD products,said managing director Hyun Woo Lee.
The new LED TV should lift the company's market share of the LCD TV segment to 25% by the year-end, up from 21% last year. The company aims to sell 3,000 units over the next three months.
The two new products in the LG Live Borderless TV range are priced at 32,990 and 109,990 baht.
It expects overall sales this year will grow by 15% to 15 billion baht.
The saga drags on
The National Telecommunications Communications (NTC) finally confirmed that a lot of people have a lot of interest in thirdgeneration (3G) yuppiephone service,and not very many of them have kind thoughts about the regulators; about 1,000 people from the phone companies,financial advisers and phone suppliers showed up for what the NTC would be the one and only public hearing on its plans to auction and regulate 3G services;not so fast, said the private business leaders, such as Athueck Asvanont, who is chairman of vice at True Move ; he explained to the NTC that the constitution (Article 84-1) bans the government from competing with telecoms firms,and what are AIS (of Shingapore) and DTAC (of Norway) but foreign state companies?; then the lawyers took a crack at the commission, explaining that it is actually illegal for the NTC to get involved in 3G, because it is a matter for the National Broadcasting Commission, which doesn't exist yet - and any action by the NTC could be overturned by a court decision, sinking 3G even further behind high technology countries like Laos and Cambodia.
For those who missed it, lawyer Wirot Poonsuwan wrote an excellent review in a certain daily newspaper of the dogand-pony show known as 3G licensing and operation; it is online at www.bangkokpost.com/business/telecom/24707.
The Energy Ministry announced field tests on biodiesel B10 fuel will soon begin, supervised by PTT and the ministry's own Department of Energy Business; if everything goes as expected,the new fuel could win approval as soon as early next year; B10 is 90 percent regular diesel and 10 percent methyl ester, produced from palm.
Your CAT Telecom is no longer a long-distance telephone company, it is an "integrated wireless services provider"; so says your CAT president Jirayuth Roongsrithong, who figures the state enterprise can boost income by spreading out a bit here, tweaking a bit there, and reap the benefits of broadband Internet; but what CAT really is waiting for is issuing licences for thirdgeneration phones, because broadband services will really grow, then; Mr Jirayuth predicted CAT will gross 52 billion baht by the end of the year, even though international call income is certain to slide again.
The Metropolitan Electricity Authority slogged along on its lonely quest to bury power lines in Bangkok; all it has to do is to coordinate with City Hall, telecoms firms and mass-transit operators; MEA governor Pornthape Thunyapongchai noted the "poor city development plan" of previous Bangkok administrators; for now, the only underground power lines are around the Grand Palace and along Silom Road;the MEA is trying to herd the cats into a 3-billion-baht plan to bury wires along Phaya Thai, Sukhumvit and Phahon Yothin, and their sois.
Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC Corp said flatly it would capture a quarter of the Thai smartphone market volume and value - by New Year's Eve; country manager Nattawat Woranopakul figured it would be easy to sell about 100,000 of the phones Thais will buy this year, and grow HTC revenues by 20 percent to 1.8 billion baht; overall,he expects Thais to buy 10 million yuppiephones for 27.9 billion baht - a huge drop from the record 47.3 billion baht in 2006; part of the reason for the drop is falling phone prices, with the cost of smartphones this year alone dropping from a 2008 average of 16,000 to 12,000 baht.
The company formerly known as Philips of Holland, now called China Electronics Corp (CEC) of Shenzhen,vowed to make a comeback in the Thailand yuppiephone market and get into the world Top 5 again by 2014; Philip Lee, who handles overseas affairs for CEC subsidiary Shenzhen Sang Fei Con-sumer Communications, predicted confidently he would double sales in Thailand and globally this year, selling six million phones in total; Philips sold the phone business to the Chinese firm in 2007.
Entertainment giant GMM Grammy signed a deal with Chunghwa Telecom of Taiwan to provide Thai and other Asian workers to download music from the Internet trough their phones; managing director Surachai Sensri of GMM International was so devastated by all that homesickness by the 350,000 immigrant workers in Taiwan that he decided to cash in on it with music from the homeland; the exclusive deal allows Grammy to provide a "buffet service"of continuous music for the equivalent of 52 baht a month, and Grammy also expects to get streaming rights to Vietnamese and Philippines music for the service.
Thailand crunched the numbers on a single production base for the electrical and electronics industry in Southeast Asia - and gave a big smile; eliminating all import tariffs and facilitating trade with the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta)will give a big boost to the Thai industry;Charuek Hengrasmee, president of the Electrical and Electronics Institute, and Katiya Greigarn, chairman of the Electrical, Electronics Industry Club at the Federation of Thai Industries, noted the currently strong position of Thailand in the making of hard drives and electrical appliances - air conditioners,refrigerators and microwaves, say and figured that in international eyes,Thailand will be "the manufacturing centre of the region."
For those who missed it, lawyer Wirot Poonsuwan wrote an excellent review in a certain daily newspaper of the dogand-pony show known as 3G licensing and operation; it is online at www.bangkokpost.com/business/telecom/24707.
The Energy Ministry announced field tests on biodiesel B10 fuel will soon begin, supervised by PTT and the ministry's own Department of Energy Business; if everything goes as expected,the new fuel could win approval as soon as early next year; B10 is 90 percent regular diesel and 10 percent methyl ester, produced from palm.
Your CAT Telecom is no longer a long-distance telephone company, it is an "integrated wireless services provider"; so says your CAT president Jirayuth Roongsrithong, who figures the state enterprise can boost income by spreading out a bit here, tweaking a bit there, and reap the benefits of broadband Internet; but what CAT really is waiting for is issuing licences for thirdgeneration phones, because broadband services will really grow, then; Mr Jirayuth predicted CAT will gross 52 billion baht by the end of the year, even though international call income is certain to slide again.
The Metropolitan Electricity Authority slogged along on its lonely quest to bury power lines in Bangkok; all it has to do is to coordinate with City Hall, telecoms firms and mass-transit operators; MEA governor Pornthape Thunyapongchai noted the "poor city development plan" of previous Bangkok administrators; for now, the only underground power lines are around the Grand Palace and along Silom Road;the MEA is trying to herd the cats into a 3-billion-baht plan to bury wires along Phaya Thai, Sukhumvit and Phahon Yothin, and their sois.
Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC Corp said flatly it would capture a quarter of the Thai smartphone market volume and value - by New Year's Eve; country manager Nattawat Woranopakul figured it would be easy to sell about 100,000 of the phones Thais will buy this year, and grow HTC revenues by 20 percent to 1.8 billion baht; overall,he expects Thais to buy 10 million yuppiephones for 27.9 billion baht - a huge drop from the record 47.3 billion baht in 2006; part of the reason for the drop is falling phone prices, with the cost of smartphones this year alone dropping from a 2008 average of 16,000 to 12,000 baht.
The company formerly known as Philips of Holland, now called China Electronics Corp (CEC) of Shenzhen,vowed to make a comeback in the Thailand yuppiephone market and get into the world Top 5 again by 2014; Philip Lee, who handles overseas affairs for CEC subsidiary Shenzhen Sang Fei Con-sumer Communications, predicted confidently he would double sales in Thailand and globally this year, selling six million phones in total; Philips sold the phone business to the Chinese firm in 2007.
Entertainment giant GMM Grammy signed a deal with Chunghwa Telecom of Taiwan to provide Thai and other Asian workers to download music from the Internet trough their phones; managing director Surachai Sensri of GMM International was so devastated by all that homesickness by the 350,000 immigrant workers in Taiwan that he decided to cash in on it with music from the homeland; the exclusive deal allows Grammy to provide a "buffet service"of continuous music for the equivalent of 52 baht a month, and Grammy also expects to get streaming rights to Vietnamese and Philippines music for the service.
Thailand crunched the numbers on a single production base for the electrical and electronics industry in Southeast Asia - and gave a big smile; eliminating all import tariffs and facilitating trade with the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta)will give a big boost to the Thai industry;Charuek Hengrasmee, president of the Electrical and Electronics Institute, and Katiya Greigarn, chairman of the Electrical, Electronics Industry Club at the Federation of Thai Industries, noted the currently strong position of Thailand in the making of hard drives and electrical appliances - air conditioners,refrigerators and microwaves, say and figured that in international eyes,Thailand will be "the manufacturing centre of the region."
Lights out for Edison bulbs
Russia plans to ban the production and sale of all types of incandescent light bulb from Jan 1,2014, in a move designed to reduce energy consumption.
The ban will be the final stage in Russia's plan to phase out the standard,high-energy light bulbs and mirrors a move already under way in the European Union to switch toward less energyintensive lighting sources.
Economy Minister Elvira Nabiullina told a news conference yesterday that making and selling incandescent bulbs with a power rating of more than 100 watts, which account for about 14% of all bulbs used in Russia, would be banned from Jan 1,2011.
From Jan 1,2013, incandescent bulbs with a power rating of more than 75 watts will follow suit.
Traditional incandescent bulbs have changed little since they were first commercially produced by Thomas Edison in 1879. Efficiency improvements reached a limit about 50 years ago.
European households are already switching to more efficient halogen, LED (light-emitting diode) and fluorescent CFL lamps. The European Union plans to phase out incandescent bulbs by 2012.
Industry bodies have said thousands of jobs in the European Union could be lost, mostly in eastern Europe, as the new regulations favour China-based manufacturers of CFL bulbs.
Other major light bulb manufacturers include General Electric Co, Philips,Toshiba Corp and Siemens unit Osram.
Light bulbs are also major consumers of tungsten, a hard metal used in the filament.
"As far as the second and third stages are concerned, the targets for 2013 and 2014, these will not be fixed rigidly in law," senior Kremlin economic aide Arkady Dvorkovich said at the same briefing."We need to see how the first stage works ... but I think this timetable is entirely realistic."
The ban will be the final stage in Russia's plan to phase out the standard,high-energy light bulbs and mirrors a move already under way in the European Union to switch toward less energyintensive lighting sources.
Economy Minister Elvira Nabiullina told a news conference yesterday that making and selling incandescent bulbs with a power rating of more than 100 watts, which account for about 14% of all bulbs used in Russia, would be banned from Jan 1,2011.
From Jan 1,2013, incandescent bulbs with a power rating of more than 75 watts will follow suit.
Traditional incandescent bulbs have changed little since they were first commercially produced by Thomas Edison in 1879. Efficiency improvements reached a limit about 50 years ago.
European households are already switching to more efficient halogen, LED (light-emitting diode) and fluorescent CFL lamps. The European Union plans to phase out incandescent bulbs by 2012.
Industry bodies have said thousands of jobs in the European Union could be lost, mostly in eastern Europe, as the new regulations favour China-based manufacturers of CFL bulbs.
Other major light bulb manufacturers include General Electric Co, Philips,Toshiba Corp and Siemens unit Osram.
Light bulbs are also major consumers of tungsten, a hard metal used in the filament.
"As far as the second and third stages are concerned, the targets for 2013 and 2014, these will not be fixed rigidly in law," senior Kremlin economic aide Arkady Dvorkovich said at the same briefing."We need to see how the first stage works ... but I think this timetable is entirely realistic."
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Experience full 3D in your home
A parade of new technology means that the 3D experience is no longer limited to the theatre, as customers will now be able to experience it at home.
The development of advanced technologies in multi-core processor power allows new gadgets and computer products to go beyond 2D and experience a wider variety of uses, according to Prasit Worachatrawanit, AR Information and Publication Deputy Manager.
Several new 3D products will be made available to the Thai market at the upcoming Commart Comtech Thailand 2009 event, which will run from November 5-8 at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre in Bangkok.
The 3D technology is no longer limited to LCD TV displays as it has expanded to many areas such as the compact digital camera from Fujifilm that can be used to shoot 3D photos and movies that can be viewed without special glasses.
Webcams can now also support the
technology. For example, the Novo Minoru is the world's first 3D webcam.Its software has stereoscopic anaglyphic processing that allows users to be seen in three dimensions by viewers with 3D capability on their screens.
Digital cameras are also evolving to display 3D pictures by integrating with projector technology. The Nikon COOLPIX S1000pj is the world's first camera with an integrated projector,which helps people share and view photos and videos using a one-touch projection system on the camera. The built-in projector easily projects images from approximately 5 inches up to 40 inches.
Moreover, consumers can upgrade their PCs to a fully immersive stereoscopic 3D experience with NVIDIA 3D Vision. With a combination of hightech wireless glasses and advanced software,3D Vision automatically transforms hundreds of PC games into full stereoscopic 3D.
Meanwhile senior marketing manager for Acer Thailand, Nitipat Praweenwongwuthia, said the company will introduce 3D notebooks Aspire5738DG in Thailand for the first time,featuring 15.6-inch screens and software that supports 3D movies, and converts standard 2D movies into 3D.
The development of advanced technologies in multi-core processor power allows new gadgets and computer products to go beyond 2D and experience a wider variety of uses, according to Prasit Worachatrawanit, AR Information and Publication Deputy Manager.
Several new 3D products will be made available to the Thai market at the upcoming Commart Comtech Thailand 2009 event, which will run from November 5-8 at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre in Bangkok.
The 3D technology is no longer limited to LCD TV displays as it has expanded to many areas such as the compact digital camera from Fujifilm that can be used to shoot 3D photos and movies that can be viewed without special glasses.
Webcams can now also support the
technology. For example, the Novo Minoru is the world's first 3D webcam.Its software has stereoscopic anaglyphic processing that allows users to be seen in three dimensions by viewers with 3D capability on their screens.
Digital cameras are also evolving to display 3D pictures by integrating with projector technology. The Nikon COOLPIX S1000pj is the world's first camera with an integrated projector,which helps people share and view photos and videos using a one-touch projection system on the camera. The built-in projector easily projects images from approximately 5 inches up to 40 inches.
Moreover, consumers can upgrade their PCs to a fully immersive stereoscopic 3D experience with NVIDIA 3D Vision. With a combination of hightech wireless glasses and advanced software,3D Vision automatically transforms hundreds of PC games into full stereoscopic 3D.
Meanwhile senior marketing manager for Acer Thailand, Nitipat Praweenwongwuthia, said the company will introduce 3D notebooks Aspire5738DG in Thailand for the first time,featuring 15.6-inch screens and software that supports 3D movies, and converts standard 2D movies into 3D.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Electrolux enters the premium air-con market
Electrolux has launched air-conditioners in Southeast Asia for the first time, aiming at the top or top-three rank for the premium segment in several countries within three years.
"We're not worried about a price war with other brands, because Electrolux is positioned in the premium segment. We believe consumers choosing our brand think about the product's innovations and quality more than they do the price," Suresh Balan, president for East Asia at Electrolux Major Appliances, said yesterday in Bangkok.
Electrolux' prices are 7-10-per-cent higher than other brands in the same segment.
The Swedish company will also double the Asia-Pacific's sales contribution to 16 per cent within the same time frame.
The Electrolux brand is strong in many appliance segments, including front-loading washing machines, vacuum cleaners and cooking preparation in Thailand and other Southeast Asia countries, he said.
In Thailand, Electrolux is the market leader in premium front-loading washing machines and vacuum cleaners. It is either the market leader or in the top three in other Southeast Asia countries.
Electrolux is confident it will be as successful in the regional air-conditioning market.
"Electrolux has shifted its focus more to the Asia-Pacific because it has the fastest growth among similar markets, such as the US and Europe, which have been hit from the global downturn despite their small sales contribution," he said.
Electrolux has increased its marketing budget for Southeast Asia, including Thailand, this year to promote its electric appliances. It will also increase the marketing budget for air-conditioners, so that it can compete with brands from South Korea and Japan.
"Despite the global recession, Electrolux has no plans to cut its marketing budget," he said.
Its marketing strategy will stress to consumers that Electrolux air-conditioners are designed for real consumers' needs and lifestyles. It will not dwell on the product's innovations like other brands usually do.
Electrolux air-conditioners combine an array of proven air-purification technologies. Other key features include Feel technology, which lets users use the remote control as a thermostat, so that cooling can follow them as they move throughout the room.
Electrolux introduced the line in Indonesia and Malaysia in August and Vietnam and Thailand this month. Next will be the Philippines.
Three sizes are offered - 9,000 British thermal units, 12,000 BTUs and 18,000 BTUs - with prices starting at Bt24,900, Bt28,900 and Bt34,900, respectively.
Electrolux Thailand general manager Sutti Manokitjarunman said the company planned to launch a wide range of electric appliances next year. The company expects its revenue and net profit to grow at a double-digit rate next year.
"We're not worried about a price war with other brands, because Electrolux is positioned in the premium segment. We believe consumers choosing our brand think about the product's innovations and quality more than they do the price," Suresh Balan, president for East Asia at Electrolux Major Appliances, said yesterday in Bangkok.
Electrolux' prices are 7-10-per-cent higher than other brands in the same segment.
The Swedish company will also double the Asia-Pacific's sales contribution to 16 per cent within the same time frame.
The Electrolux brand is strong in many appliance segments, including front-loading washing machines, vacuum cleaners and cooking preparation in Thailand and other Southeast Asia countries, he said.
In Thailand, Electrolux is the market leader in premium front-loading washing machines and vacuum cleaners. It is either the market leader or in the top three in other Southeast Asia countries.
Electrolux is confident it will be as successful in the regional air-conditioning market.
"Electrolux has shifted its focus more to the Asia-Pacific because it has the fastest growth among similar markets, such as the US and Europe, which have been hit from the global downturn despite their small sales contribution," he said.
Electrolux has increased its marketing budget for Southeast Asia, including Thailand, this year to promote its electric appliances. It will also increase the marketing budget for air-conditioners, so that it can compete with brands from South Korea and Japan.
"Despite the global recession, Electrolux has no plans to cut its marketing budget," he said.
Its marketing strategy will stress to consumers that Electrolux air-conditioners are designed for real consumers' needs and lifestyles. It will not dwell on the product's innovations like other brands usually do.
Electrolux air-conditioners combine an array of proven air-purification technologies. Other key features include Feel technology, which lets users use the remote control as a thermostat, so that cooling can follow them as they move throughout the room.
Electrolux introduced the line in Indonesia and Malaysia in August and Vietnam and Thailand this month. Next will be the Philippines.
Three sizes are offered - 9,000 British thermal units, 12,000 BTUs and 18,000 BTUs - with prices starting at Bt24,900, Bt28,900 and Bt34,900, respectively.
Electrolux Thailand general manager Sutti Manokitjarunman said the company planned to launch a wide range of electric appliances next year. The company expects its revenue and net profit to grow at a double-digit rate next year.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Electronics sector to change strategy
The electric and electronics industry wil use the Bt4-billion budget proposed under the government's second stimulus package to enhance its competitiveness by upgrading from original-equipment to original-design manufacturing.
The three-year model scheme starting next year will concentrate on developing four important areas, which are product design, the supply chain, design-skilled staff and infrastructure, Katiya Greigarn, president of the Thai Association of Electrical and Electronics Industries, said yesterday.
To do original-design manufacturing,the industry needs to adopt advanced technology and improve the skills of its workforce to create high-value and differentiated products.
The industry normally requires 10,000 new workers per year, assuming annual growth of 10 per cent.
"We have to avoid the tough competition in common products because our wages are not cheap anymore. However, the government's support is needed to encourage manufacturers to do their own research and develoment as well as train skillled workers to support leading-edge technology," he said.
The association will collaborate with the National Electronics and Comuter Technology Centre and universitie to help local manufacturers conduct R&D to serve three main functions-user-centre desig n, universal design and eco-design.
Forming a cluster for the industry will help reduce maufacturers' logistics costs and facilitate their developing the necessary infrastructure together including modern laboratories.
Without state support ffor the industry's development, it will be difficult to maintain exports like now because of the tough global competition, he said.
"These steps require time. If we still do notheing, I can't see how we can survive in the futrue," he added.
The three-year model scheme starting next year will concentrate on developing four important areas, which are product design, the supply chain, design-skilled staff and infrastructure, Katiya Greigarn, president of the Thai Association of Electrical and Electronics Industries, said yesterday.
To do original-design manufacturing,the industry needs to adopt advanced technology and improve the skills of its workforce to create high-value and differentiated products.
The industry normally requires 10,000 new workers per year, assuming annual growth of 10 per cent.
"We have to avoid the tough competition in common products because our wages are not cheap anymore. However, the government's support is needed to encourage manufacturers to do their own research and develoment as well as train skillled workers to support leading-edge technology," he said.
The association will collaborate with the National Electronics and Comuter Technology Centre and universitie to help local manufacturers conduct R&D to serve three main functions-user-centre desig n, universal design and eco-design.
Forming a cluster for the industry will help reduce maufacturers' logistics costs and facilitate their developing the necessary infrastructure together including modern laboratories.
Without state support ffor the industry's development, it will be difficult to maintain exports like now because of the tough global competition, he said.
"These steps require time. If we still do notheing, I can't see how we can survive in the futrue," he added.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Creative in the kitchen
Introduced to in the US in the early 1970, the first modern food processors were designed by Carl Sontheimer, the brilliant engineer who founded Cuisinart, a brand that is today recognised by culinary experts the world over.
In 1989, Conair Group took over Sontheimer's business and expanded the product line to include hightech kitchen utensils such as coffee makers, toasters, kettles, food processors, water filtration units, ice cream/yoghurt makers, cutlery, electric knives, blenders and can openers.
Cuisinart recently launched five new products and they're already proving popular with professional chefs and the brand's many fans.
For the coffee lover, there's a Grind & Brew Thermal 10-Cup Automatic Coffeemaker that grinds the beans before rustling up a brew. It's a double-wall, insulated, brushed metal, thermal carafe that keep up to 10 cups of java juice hot for hours.
Also new to the Thai market is the Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill, an elegant stainless steel unit that consistently grinds coffee beans to preserve delicate natural oils, maximising both flavour and aroma. It's easy to use too:simply select the desired grind consistency and cup quantity and the Burr Mill automatically stops when the right amount of coffee has been ground.
Tea making is easy and fast with a Cordless Automatic Electric Kettle in stainless steel that boils two litres of water in minuteds. While the tea is brewing, make the toast in the Classic 2-Slice Toaster in brushed stainless polished chrome that lets you defrost and toast bagels and bread.
Last but not least, the Smart Stick Hand Blender lets you blend, prep and whip a variety of ingredients and also features whisk and chopper attachments, perfect for that morning smoothie!
In 1989, Conair Group took over Sontheimer's business and expanded the product line to include hightech kitchen utensils such as coffee makers, toasters, kettles, food processors, water filtration units, ice cream/yoghurt makers, cutlery, electric knives, blenders and can openers.
Cuisinart recently launched five new products and they're already proving popular with professional chefs and the brand's many fans.
For the coffee lover, there's a Grind & Brew Thermal 10-Cup Automatic Coffeemaker that grinds the beans before rustling up a brew. It's a double-wall, insulated, brushed metal, thermal carafe that keep up to 10 cups of java juice hot for hours.
Also new to the Thai market is the Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill, an elegant stainless steel unit that consistently grinds coffee beans to preserve delicate natural oils, maximising both flavour and aroma. It's easy to use too:simply select the desired grind consistency and cup quantity and the Burr Mill automatically stops when the right amount of coffee has been ground.
Tea making is easy and fast with a Cordless Automatic Electric Kettle in stainless steel that boils two litres of water in minuteds. While the tea is brewing, make the toast in the Classic 2-Slice Toaster in brushed stainless polished chrome that lets you defrost and toast bagels and bread.
Last but not least, the Smart Stick Hand Blender lets you blend, prep and whip a variety of ingredients and also features whisk and chopper attachments, perfect for that morning smoothie!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
UK'S PRINCE PHILIP LOSES HIS CONTROL OVER MODERN TV SETS
Britain's Prince Philip said he was baffled by modern television remote controls and ended up lying on the floor by the set to operate it instead,in a video posted yesterday on the internet.
The husband of Queen Elizabeth II bemoaned the design of televisions and praised people's tolerance for coping with them, in a clip on the official Royal Channel on the video-sharing website YouTube.
"I think people are very tolerant, the way they go on tolerating these ghastly things," the 88-year-old said, before laying into television set design.
"You used to put it on the floor, and then they put the controls on the bottom so you had to lie on the floor, and then if you wanted to record something the recorder was underneath.
"So you ended up lying on the floor with a torch in your teeth, a magnifying glass and an instruction book.
"Either that or you had to employ a grandson of age 10 to do it for you."
His comments were made in an interview marking the 50th anniversary of a Design Council prize in his name.
"To work out how to operate a television set you practically have to make love to the thing." he said, according to The Times newspaper.
The husband of Queen Elizabeth II bemoaned the design of televisions and praised people's tolerance for coping with them, in a clip on the official Royal Channel on the video-sharing website YouTube.
"I think people are very tolerant, the way they go on tolerating these ghastly things," the 88-year-old said, before laying into television set design.
"You used to put it on the floor, and then they put the controls on the bottom so you had to lie on the floor, and then if you wanted to record something the recorder was underneath.
"So you ended up lying on the floor with a torch in your teeth, a magnifying glass and an instruction book.
"Either that or you had to employ a grandson of age 10 to do it for you."
His comments were made in an interview marking the 50th anniversary of a Design Council prize in his name.
"To work out how to operate a television set you practically have to make love to the thing." he said, according to The Times newspaper.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Toshiba to continue investing in Thailand
Toshiba Corporation of Japan insists it will continue its investment in Thailand,which is a candidate for an LED lighting production base next year.
"Thailand is the most important production base and marketing arm of Toshiba because it makes products for the whole world, while China only serves the domestic and Japanese markets,"chairman Atsutoshi Nishida said during a meeting yesterday with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.
Toshiba increased its focus on Asean and expects its Thai operation will export more to Asean and the six countries that have free trade agreements with the 10-member economic bloc.
Toshiba entered the Thai market through a joint venture with Thai partners 40 years ago. It has 16 subsidiaries in Thailand with total turnover of US$2.6 billion and 13,000 employees.
The newest subsidiary, Toshiba Storage Device (Thailand) Co (TSDT), will open its hard disk drive (HDD) plant in Navanakorn Industrial Estate Zone 3 on Oct 14. TSDT has registered capital of about 1 billion baht.
Apart from HDD, Toshiba is considering setting up a large new production facility for LED bulbs. Toshiba Thailand has had a lighting production facility for 35 years.
Mr Nishida told Mr Abhisit that Toshiba had long focused on energy-saving businesses. Toshiba in Japan has already invested in nuclear, thermal and solar power, and electrical appliances that use less energy. It is also trying to curb carbon dioxide emissions.
Mr Abhisit said Toshiba's business strategy was in line with Thai government policy, which values environmental issues and alternative energy investment.
Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, chairwoman of Toshiba (Thailand) Co, the local distributor of Toshiba appliances, said the parent firm's policy meant it would reduce CO2 emissions from home appliance production units and also from product design and production procedures.
Sales of Toshiba (Thailand) in the first half of fiscal year 2009 starting on April 1 grew by 11-12%, compared with an earlier projection of 8%. Marketing activities with dealers and consumers to celebrate its 40th anniversary in Thailand contributed to the rise.
The company expects sales in the second half will grow by 20% because of new product developments and an improved economy.
"Thailand is the most important production base and marketing arm of Toshiba because it makes products for the whole world, while China only serves the domestic and Japanese markets,"chairman Atsutoshi Nishida said during a meeting yesterday with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.
Toshiba increased its focus on Asean and expects its Thai operation will export more to Asean and the six countries that have free trade agreements with the 10-member economic bloc.
Toshiba entered the Thai market through a joint venture with Thai partners 40 years ago. It has 16 subsidiaries in Thailand with total turnover of US$2.6 billion and 13,000 employees.
The newest subsidiary, Toshiba Storage Device (Thailand) Co (TSDT), will open its hard disk drive (HDD) plant in Navanakorn Industrial Estate Zone 3 on Oct 14. TSDT has registered capital of about 1 billion baht.
Apart from HDD, Toshiba is considering setting up a large new production facility for LED bulbs. Toshiba Thailand has had a lighting production facility for 35 years.
Mr Nishida told Mr Abhisit that Toshiba had long focused on energy-saving businesses. Toshiba in Japan has already invested in nuclear, thermal and solar power, and electrical appliances that use less energy. It is also trying to curb carbon dioxide emissions.
Mr Abhisit said Toshiba's business strategy was in line with Thai government policy, which values environmental issues and alternative energy investment.
Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, chairwoman of Toshiba (Thailand) Co, the local distributor of Toshiba appliances, said the parent firm's policy meant it would reduce CO2 emissions from home appliance production units and also from product design and production procedures.
Sales of Toshiba (Thailand) in the first half of fiscal year 2009 starting on April 1 grew by 11-12%, compared with an earlier projection of 8%. Marketing activities with dealers and consumers to celebrate its 40th anniversary in Thailand contributed to the rise.
The company expects sales in the second half will grow by 20% because of new product developments and an improved economy.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Air-con deals aid SNC margin
SNC Former Plc, a SET-listed maker of steel and aluminium parts for airconditioners, expects its margins will improve next year after it concludes deals to supply four foreign air-conditioner producers.
SNC chief executive Somchai Thaisanguanvorakul said the company was in talks with companies in Japan, Australia, the Middle East and the United States to supply air-conditioner parts designed and developed by SNC.
"The first deal with a Japanese airconditioner producer is likely to be completed late next month or in early December and the others early next year.These bulk sales will boost our revenues and margins next year," he said.
Initially, the Japanese company wanted to hire Chinese suppliers to produce parts for it but SNC sent it some sample products for consideration. Its executives were impressed by the high quality of Thai products, which are priced similarly to the Chinese parts.
SNC forecast that it would achieve 20% revenue growth this year, from 4.04 billion baht last year. The company has invested 200 million baht in new machinery and equipment so far.
Next year, SNC's profitability and net margin are expected to improve from 3% this year as the products to be sold to the four new customers are being developed locally from upstream to downstream production.
Mr Somchai said the new deals would also lift the company's production capacity by 60% from one million units of air-conditioners per year.
"Demand for air-conditioners has shrunk due to the global economic slowdown. However, new orders are improving after many people expect that the global economy will pick up next year," he said.
In the first half, SNC posted a net profit of 71.69 million baht on revenues of 3.07 billion. In the second quarter alone, its net profit was 37.39 million and revenues totalled 1.5 billion baht,of which 1.04 billion came from OEM (original equipment manufacturer) contracts and the rest from sales of residential and automobile air-conditioner parts.
SNC shares closed yesterday on the SET at 6.25 baht, up five satang, in trade worth 1.6 million baht.
SNC chief executive Somchai Thaisanguanvorakul said the company was in talks with companies in Japan, Australia, the Middle East and the United States to supply air-conditioner parts designed and developed by SNC.
"The first deal with a Japanese airconditioner producer is likely to be completed late next month or in early December and the others early next year.These bulk sales will boost our revenues and margins next year," he said.
Initially, the Japanese company wanted to hire Chinese suppliers to produce parts for it but SNC sent it some sample products for consideration. Its executives were impressed by the high quality of Thai products, which are priced similarly to the Chinese parts.
SNC forecast that it would achieve 20% revenue growth this year, from 4.04 billion baht last year. The company has invested 200 million baht in new machinery and equipment so far.
Next year, SNC's profitability and net margin are expected to improve from 3% this year as the products to be sold to the four new customers are being developed locally from upstream to downstream production.
Mr Somchai said the new deals would also lift the company's production capacity by 60% from one million units of air-conditioners per year.
"Demand for air-conditioners has shrunk due to the global economic slowdown. However, new orders are improving after many people expect that the global economy will pick up next year," he said.
In the first half, SNC posted a net profit of 71.69 million baht on revenues of 3.07 billion. In the second quarter alone, its net profit was 37.39 million and revenues totalled 1.5 billion baht,of which 1.04 billion came from OEM (original equipment manufacturer) contracts and the rest from sales of residential and automobile air-conditioner parts.
SNC shares closed yesterday on the SET at 6.25 baht, up five satang, in trade worth 1.6 million baht.
TV in 3D coming to living room
You've seen movies in 3D.Now, how about your favourite TV series?
Panasonic Corp last week unveiled a 50-inch high-definition 3D plasma television and glasses that make images appear like you can touch them.
At a demonstration at Panasonic's head office in Osaka, Formula One race cars roared right by viewers and gymnasts barreled down a runway, hitting vaulting horse and flipping toward the audience.
"We've introduced concrete plans to deliver the first 3D into people's homes.It won't disappoint," said Yoshiiku Miyata, Panasonic managing executive officer in charge of audio visual products.
He declined to comment on an exact release date or price tag, stating that the company hopes the new TV sets will hit shelves sometime in 2010.
The technology works by tricking the brain into seeing 3D as high-speed shutters in the glasses work in sync with the TV to deliver a double layered image at twice the speed of normal TV.
"When the TV is showing the left image, the shutter closes the right eye so people can see only the left image,"explained Keisuke Suetsugi, manager in charge of high quality AV development.
"And the next moment, when the TV is showing the right image, the shutter glass is covering the left."
The company hopes the smaller, more living room friendly 50-inch model will become a popular choice for home theatres than a 103-inch big brother that debuted last October.
The new model will go on display to the public at the CEATEC Japan tech show from today until Saturday.
Panasonic announced in August it will team up with Twentieth Century Fox and Lightstorm Entertainment in the making of Oscar-winning director James Cameron's new 3D film Avatar ,set to open in theaters worldwide this December.
Chief rival Sony Corp announced earlier this month it also plans to launch 3D TVs by 2010.
Panasonic Corp last week unveiled a 50-inch high-definition 3D plasma television and glasses that make images appear like you can touch them.
At a demonstration at Panasonic's head office in Osaka, Formula One race cars roared right by viewers and gymnasts barreled down a runway, hitting vaulting horse and flipping toward the audience.
"We've introduced concrete plans to deliver the first 3D into people's homes.It won't disappoint," said Yoshiiku Miyata, Panasonic managing executive officer in charge of audio visual products.
He declined to comment on an exact release date or price tag, stating that the company hopes the new TV sets will hit shelves sometime in 2010.
The technology works by tricking the brain into seeing 3D as high-speed shutters in the glasses work in sync with the TV to deliver a double layered image at twice the speed of normal TV.
"When the TV is showing the left image, the shutter closes the right eye so people can see only the left image,"explained Keisuke Suetsugi, manager in charge of high quality AV development.
"And the next moment, when the TV is showing the right image, the shutter glass is covering the left."
The company hopes the smaller, more living room friendly 50-inch model will become a popular choice for home theatres than a 103-inch big brother that debuted last October.
The new model will go on display to the public at the CEATEC Japan tech show from today until Saturday.
Panasonic announced in August it will team up with Twentieth Century Fox and Lightstorm Entertainment in the making of Oscar-winning director James Cameron's new 3D film Avatar ,set to open in theaters worldwide this December.
Chief rival Sony Corp announced earlier this month it also plans to launch 3D TVs by 2010.
HIGH-SPEED EXCHANGE SYSTEM, SURGICAL DEVICE WIN AWARDS
Nine projects out of 543 entrants have been chosen for this year's National Innovation Awards, a contest aimed at promoting and encouraging local development of innovative technologies.
The chairman of the awards' selection committee, former industry minister Kosit Panpiemras, said the contest could be used to reduce imports of computer-software products and promote local intellectual property in both local and international markets.
Run by the National Innovation Agency (NIA), the awards are divided into two categories: one for economic contributions and the other for social contributions. Points are awarded in accordance with the use of the latest technologies and level of innovation, process management and possible benefits.
The winner of the National Innovation Award for Economic Contribution was the Forth mini-Multi Service Access Network (mini-MSAN), developed by Forth Corp in Bangkok. The device is a high-speed telephone and Internet exchange system that uses high technology. It was designed for the multimedia services of TOT, including home telephone, public telephone, high-speed Internet and fibre-to-the-home super-Internet broadband.
Sawat Erbchokchai, research-and-development and business-development director at Forth, said the mini-MSAN would do away with the need to import telephone exchanges worth Bt1.5 billion. The device will enable TOT to provide Internet-protocol TV and high-speed Internet access to customers around the country.
Kosit said the first runner-up in the economic-contribution category was Laminated Paper Recovery, developed by the Flexo Research Group. The process is a global innovation in the production of alternative paper pulp from waste laminated paper. Biological and chemical technologies are applied when a particular enzyme, which can degrade laminated paper, is used to remove the paper from various materials, such as aluminium foil and plastic. Then the paper is decomposed to become pulp, which can be recycled to produce paper. The technology saves costs and is environmentally friendly, Kosit said.
A second runner-up award went to C-Move Tracking System, developed by DX Innovation. The software-system innovation helps manage the transport of manufactured products. Shippers and logistics service providers can use C-Move to enhance the efficiency of product-transport systems, reducing the number of empty trips made by trucks and cutting transport costs.
The NIA gave merit awards in the economic-contribution category to B-Move RFID Sensor Network for Vehicle Tracking and LeKiSe T5 Fluorescent Lamp Label No 5.
The B-Move Sensor Network is a wireless sensor network for real-time vehicle tracking using embedded systems, communications engineering, computer engineering and logistics systems. It tracks and monitors vehicles in real-time using a radio-frequency identification (RFID) sensor network. It has low operating costs and can be applied widely in the industrial sector.
The LeKiSe T5 Fluorescent Lamp claims to have maximum efficiency. It can save 40 per cent of electricity and uses fluorescent-lamp-manufacturing technology, materials and process development technology, as well as a special coating consisting of phosphor and alumina that increases luminance.
Kosit said the National Innovation Award for Social Contribution was won by the PSU Carpal Tunnel Retractor, which he described as a world-class innovation in surgical equipment designed to treat numbness in the wrist area through a small incision measuring 1.5-1.8 centimetres.
The device makes a small tunnel in the space between nerves, tendons and muscles to improve lighting for an operation lasting only eight to 10 minutes.
The developer of the PSU Carpal Tunnel Retractor, Sunton Wongsiri, who is a lecturer in the Orthopaedic Department at Prince of Songkla University's Songklanagarind Hospital, said the device could help patients suffering from numbness in the wrist area that could result in permanent amyotrophy, a wasting away of muscle tissue. About 5.6 per cent of women are at risk of this disease.
He said the device enabled recovery within a week without recurrence for Bt1,500 to Bt2,000 per treatment. It not only treats disease quickly, but also reduces the need for imported medical equipment.
Sunton said Prince of Songkla University was now proceeding with commercial exploitation of the innovation.
The NIA did not make awards for first or second runners-up in the social-contribution category. However, it gave merit awards to two projects, one called CU-Detect and the other Microtube Gel Test for Blood Typing.
CU-Detect is a medical liquid detector designed to test for type-A (H1N1) influenza virus that provides results within 30 minutes. The detector helps reduce the use of laboratory equipment and can be used in areas with limited equipment and personnel. This low-cost analysis set can also reduce imports of expensive liquid detectors that are slower to show results.
The Microtube Gel Test for Blood Typing uses porous gel filtration to separate proteins to determine the gathering reaction in haemoglobin. Results are equivalent to those from conventional tube testing.
The chairman of the awards' selection committee, former industry minister Kosit Panpiemras, said the contest could be used to reduce imports of computer-software products and promote local intellectual property in both local and international markets.
Run by the National Innovation Agency (NIA), the awards are divided into two categories: one for economic contributions and the other for social contributions. Points are awarded in accordance with the use of the latest technologies and level of innovation, process management and possible benefits.
The winner of the National Innovation Award for Economic Contribution was the Forth mini-Multi Service Access Network (mini-MSAN), developed by Forth Corp in Bangkok. The device is a high-speed telephone and Internet exchange system that uses high technology. It was designed for the multimedia services of TOT, including home telephone, public telephone, high-speed Internet and fibre-to-the-home super-Internet broadband.
Sawat Erbchokchai, research-and-development and business-development director at Forth, said the mini-MSAN would do away with the need to import telephone exchanges worth Bt1.5 billion. The device will enable TOT to provide Internet-protocol TV and high-speed Internet access to customers around the country.
Kosit said the first runner-up in the economic-contribution category was Laminated Paper Recovery, developed by the Flexo Research Group. The process is a global innovation in the production of alternative paper pulp from waste laminated paper. Biological and chemical technologies are applied when a particular enzyme, which can degrade laminated paper, is used to remove the paper from various materials, such as aluminium foil and plastic. Then the paper is decomposed to become pulp, which can be recycled to produce paper. The technology saves costs and is environmentally friendly, Kosit said.
A second runner-up award went to C-Move Tracking System, developed by DX Innovation. The software-system innovation helps manage the transport of manufactured products. Shippers and logistics service providers can use C-Move to enhance the efficiency of product-transport systems, reducing the number of empty trips made by trucks and cutting transport costs.
The NIA gave merit awards in the economic-contribution category to B-Move RFID Sensor Network for Vehicle Tracking and LeKiSe T5 Fluorescent Lamp Label No 5.
The B-Move Sensor Network is a wireless sensor network for real-time vehicle tracking using embedded systems, communications engineering, computer engineering and logistics systems. It tracks and monitors vehicles in real-time using a radio-frequency identification (RFID) sensor network. It has low operating costs and can be applied widely in the industrial sector.
The LeKiSe T5 Fluorescent Lamp claims to have maximum efficiency. It can save 40 per cent of electricity and uses fluorescent-lamp-manufacturing technology, materials and process development technology, as well as a special coating consisting of phosphor and alumina that increases luminance.
Kosit said the National Innovation Award for Social Contribution was won by the PSU Carpal Tunnel Retractor, which he described as a world-class innovation in surgical equipment designed to treat numbness in the wrist area through a small incision measuring 1.5-1.8 centimetres.
The device makes a small tunnel in the space between nerves, tendons and muscles to improve lighting for an operation lasting only eight to 10 minutes.
The developer of the PSU Carpal Tunnel Retractor, Sunton Wongsiri, who is a lecturer in the Orthopaedic Department at Prince of Songkla University's Songklanagarind Hospital, said the device could help patients suffering from numbness in the wrist area that could result in permanent amyotrophy, a wasting away of muscle tissue. About 5.6 per cent of women are at risk of this disease.
He said the device enabled recovery within a week without recurrence for Bt1,500 to Bt2,000 per treatment. It not only treats disease quickly, but also reduces the need for imported medical equipment.
Sunton said Prince of Songkla University was now proceeding with commercial exploitation of the innovation.
The NIA did not make awards for first or second runners-up in the social-contribution category. However, it gave merit awards to two projects, one called CU-Detect and the other Microtube Gel Test for Blood Typing.
CU-Detect is a medical liquid detector designed to test for type-A (H1N1) influenza virus that provides results within 30 minutes. The detector helps reduce the use of laboratory equipment and can be used in areas with limited equipment and personnel. This low-cost analysis set can also reduce imports of expensive liquid detectors that are slower to show results.
The Microtube Gel Test for Blood Typing uses porous gel filtration to separate proteins to determine the gathering reaction in haemoglobin. Results are equivalent to those from conventional tube testing.
Friday, October 2, 2009
GE's five leadership traits
Multinational conglomerate GE believes leaders must possess five distinguishing qualities:
External Focus: Instead of inward looking, they listen to what customers and society say.
Clear Thinking: Leaders must be "crystal clear" in their thoughts.
Imagination: Leaders must have imagination and be capable of innovation and "thinking outside the box".
Inclusiveness and compassion: Leaders must be considerate to both their team and to customers who use their services. They don't think about people solely from their own viewpoint, but consider others' feelings as well.
Expertise: Leaders must be very good at what they do.
External Focus: Instead of inward looking, they listen to what customers and society say.
Clear Thinking: Leaders must be "crystal clear" in their thoughts.
Imagination: Leaders must have imagination and be capable of innovation and "thinking outside the box".
Inclusiveness and compassion: Leaders must be considerate to both their team and to customers who use their services. They don't think about people solely from their own viewpoint, but consider others' feelings as well.
Expertise: Leaders must be very good at what they do.
ANTICIPATION OF CHANGE HELPS GE EVOLVE
General Electric, better known simply as GE, has an underlying strength in its ability to anticipate change and to continually evolve, both as an organisation and in the way it does business.
So says Pornlert Lattanan, GE's president and national executive for Thailand and Laos, when speaking of the vast US-based conglomerate that Forbes this year described as the world's largest company.
He said the director of the Sasin Graudate Institute of Business Administration, Toemsakdi Krishnamra, had recently aasked why GE had responded so well to the world's financial crisis.
In reply, GE denied "responding" to the crisis. Rather, it had anticipated the crisis and prepared well beforehand.
"We anticipated this, at my level, two years earlier and we had an action plan one year beforehand," Pornlert said.
Having anticipated a shift in the world's economic power, GE began several years ago what it calls "reverse innovation". This involves the design of products for emerging markets and making them global, instead following conventional wisdom and creating products for developed economies land adapting them for emerging countriems (GE's chairman and chief executive, Jeffrey Immelt, has written specifically about this. See "How GE us Disrupting Itself", Harvard Business Review, September 28.)
Pornlet told The Nation in an exclusive interview that GE had redesigned its business mod,el to develop products "from scratch" for developing markets, and although these products might not be among the most sophosticated, they worked well for those markets.
However, the products are now being sold in the US and other developed markets because users in those countries have been forced to reduce their costs.
"They are now willing to pay 50 per cent for an 80-per-cent performance," Pornlert said. "You don't have to drive a top-class car every day.When you go out looking for a land site, would you drive your Lexus? Wouldn't you rather drive a pickup?"
In his Harvard Business Review article,Immelt refers to a US@1,000 (Bt33,400) handheld electrocar-diogram device and a portable ultrasound machine, developed originally for India and China, as being among GE's "reverse innovation" products that are now being sold in the US.
As well as product development, GS has found Asia to be a good place in which to study new applications that can be applied worldwide, Pornlert said.
Pornlert said the "evolving GE" had given rise to a joke within the company: "If you don't like something, don't worry. It will be gone in six months. On the other hand, if you like something, it may also be gone in six months.
In a big corporation, there is always a chance that something will have to be ahandoned, even if it is believed to be good, because it doesn't work well elsewhere, he said.
"Internal reflection" is a mechanism that helps GE to maintain its evolution. The company has an executive development course for executives with high potential. It covers the conglomerate's worldwide operations. Four of the 30 executives chosen for this year's course, which had the theme "Leadership for the 21st century", elected to come to Southeast Asia, where they visited Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.
During a one-week visit to Thailand, the executives explored some leading Thai companies and universities, including Siam Cement and the Sasin institute. They also interviewed members of GE Thailand's staff.
Pornlert said he could not disclose what the executives thought about leadership for the 21st century before they submitted their final reports to GE's chief executive. However, one point of reflection was that GE Thailand was staffed mainly by "Generation X" workers, and a future challenge would be dealing with youngenr generations so that they felt pride in working for GE and an obligation to the company.
Pornlert believes the spirit of corporate social responsibility could help, and feels that CST should assume a broader concept, and should not be limited, for instance, to having the staff paint a school.
"We'd like them to feel good about what they do.[They should feel that] what they're doing has produced some impact on society; has been meaningful."
To motivate younger-generation workers, the company must not only be concerned for the young ones, but also for the older staff, who have to be trained to adjust their communications, their job assignments and their coaching methods, he said.
Pornlert said GE had succeeded well in Thailand, where it had achieved 25-per-cent annual growth for the past six or seven years. Last year, the firm recorded flat growth, mainly because it movejd out the high-growth finance business to merge this operation with Bank of Ayudhya, in which it acquired a controlling stake.
GE Thailand's business strategy is to look out for more non-finance enterprises, including energy infrastructure, technology infrastructure and consumer and industrial businesses.
Pornlert said the government's three-year Thai Khemkaeng investment programme was expected to be a boon to GE's businesses because it highlighted many areas in which the company had know-how and expertise.
Despite its worldwide coverage, GE would liek to be perceived in Thailand as a local player "that shares the same destiny as everybody in the country", Pornlert said.
So says Pornlert Lattanan, GE's president and national executive for Thailand and Laos, when speaking of the vast US-based conglomerate that Forbes this year described as the world's largest company.
He said the director of the Sasin Graudate Institute of Business Administration, Toemsakdi Krishnamra, had recently aasked why GE had responded so well to the world's financial crisis.
In reply, GE denied "responding" to the crisis. Rather, it had anticipated the crisis and prepared well beforehand.
"We anticipated this, at my level, two years earlier and we had an action plan one year beforehand," Pornlert said.
Having anticipated a shift in the world's economic power, GE began several years ago what it calls "reverse innovation". This involves the design of products for emerging markets and making them global, instead following conventional wisdom and creating products for developed economies land adapting them for emerging countriems (GE's chairman and chief executive, Jeffrey Immelt, has written specifically about this. See "How GE us Disrupting Itself", Harvard Business Review, September 28.)
Pornlet told The Nation in an exclusive interview that GE had redesigned its business mod,el to develop products "from scratch" for developing markets, and although these products might not be among the most sophosticated, they worked well for those markets.
However, the products are now being sold in the US and other developed markets because users in those countries have been forced to reduce their costs.
"They are now willing to pay 50 per cent for an 80-per-cent performance," Pornlert said. "You don't have to drive a top-class car every day.When you go out looking for a land site, would you drive your Lexus? Wouldn't you rather drive a pickup?"
In his Harvard Business Review article,Immelt refers to a US@1,000 (Bt33,400) handheld electrocar-diogram device and a portable ultrasound machine, developed originally for India and China, as being among GE's "reverse innovation" products that are now being sold in the US.
As well as product development, GS has found Asia to be a good place in which to study new applications that can be applied worldwide, Pornlert said.
Pornlert said the "evolving GE" had given rise to a joke within the company: "If you don't like something, don't worry. It will be gone in six months. On the other hand, if you like something, it may also be gone in six months.
In a big corporation, there is always a chance that something will have to be ahandoned, even if it is believed to be good, because it doesn't work well elsewhere, he said.
"Internal reflection" is a mechanism that helps GE to maintain its evolution. The company has an executive development course for executives with high potential. It covers the conglomerate's worldwide operations. Four of the 30 executives chosen for this year's course, which had the theme "Leadership for the 21st century", elected to come to Southeast Asia, where they visited Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.
During a one-week visit to Thailand, the executives explored some leading Thai companies and universities, including Siam Cement and the Sasin institute. They also interviewed members of GE Thailand's staff.
Pornlert said he could not disclose what the executives thought about leadership for the 21st century before they submitted their final reports to GE's chief executive. However, one point of reflection was that GE Thailand was staffed mainly by "Generation X" workers, and a future challenge would be dealing with youngenr generations so that they felt pride in working for GE and an obligation to the company.
Pornlert believes the spirit of corporate social responsibility could help, and feels that CST should assume a broader concept, and should not be limited, for instance, to having the staff paint a school.
"We'd like them to feel good about what they do.[They should feel that] what they're doing has produced some impact on society; has been meaningful."
To motivate younger-generation workers, the company must not only be concerned for the young ones, but also for the older staff, who have to be trained to adjust their communications, their job assignments and their coaching methods, he said.
Pornlert said GE had succeeded well in Thailand, where it had achieved 25-per-cent annual growth for the past six or seven years. Last year, the firm recorded flat growth, mainly because it movejd out the high-growth finance business to merge this operation with Bank of Ayudhya, in which it acquired a controlling stake.
GE Thailand's business strategy is to look out for more non-finance enterprises, including energy infrastructure, technology infrastructure and consumer and industrial businesses.
Pornlert said the government's three-year Thai Khemkaeng investment programme was expected to be a boon to GE's businesses because it highlighted many areas in which the company had know-how and expertise.
Despite its worldwide coverage, GE would liek to be perceived in Thailand as a local player "that shares the same destiny as everybody in the country", Pornlert said.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Sony to introduce 3-D TV
The Japanese electronics company Sony Corp plans to introduce a liquid-crystal-display television capable of playing 3-D programming by the end of next year,The Wall Street Journal reported recently.
Sony announced its plans for the new TV recent at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, an unnamed source familiar with the plans told the Journal.
Movie studios and electronics producers see 3-D video for the home as a big money maker, and Sony's rivals, including South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co and LG Electronics Inc and Japan's Panasonic Corp, have said they plan to introduce 3-D products as well.
At the moment, however,3-D films in theatres are just getting off the ground,so the initial choice of such movies on video would be limited.
The 3-D plans come as Sony has lost money in its television division for five years in a row.
Sony announced its plans for the new TV recent at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin, an unnamed source familiar with the plans told the Journal.
Movie studios and electronics producers see 3-D video for the home as a big money maker, and Sony's rivals, including South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co and LG Electronics Inc and Japan's Panasonic Corp, have said they plan to introduce 3-D products as well.
At the moment, however,3-D films in theatres are just getting off the ground,so the initial choice of such movies on video would be limited.
The 3-D plans come as Sony has lost money in its television division for five years in a row.
Greedy gadgetry
Electricity use from power-hungry devices is rising fast all over the world, report Jad Mouawad and Kate Galbraith in New York
With two laptop-loving children and a Jack Russell terrier hemmed in by an electric fence, Peter Troast figured his household used a lot of power. Just how much power did not really hit him until the night the family turned off the overhead lights at their home in Maine and began hunting gadgets that glowed in the dark.
"It was amazing to see all these lights blinking," Troast said.
As goes the Troast household, so goes the planet.
Electricity use from power-hungry gadgets is rising fast all over the world.The fancy new flat-panel televisions everyone has been buying in recent years have turned out to be bigger power hogs than some refrigerators.
The proliferation of personal computers, iPods, cell phones, game consoles and all the rest amounts to the fastestgrowing source of power demand in the world. Americans now have about 25 consumer electronic products in every household, compared with just three in 1980.
Worldwide, consumer electronics now represent 15 percent of household power demand, and that is expected to triple over the next two decades, according to the International Energy Agency, making it more difficult to tackle the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global warming.
To satisfy the demand from gadgets will require building the equivalent of 560 coal-fired power plants, or 230 nuclear plants, according to the agency.
Most energy experts see only one solution: mandatory efficiency rules specifying how much power devices may use.
Appliances like refrigerators are covered by such rules in the United States. But efforts to cover consumer electronics like televisions and game consoles have been repeatedly derailed by manufacturers worried about the higher cost of meeting the standards.That has become a problem as the spread of such gadgets counters efficiency gains made in recent years in appliances.
In 1990, refrigerator efficiency standards went into effect in the United States.Today, new refrigerators are fancier than ever, but their power consumption has been slashed by about 45 percent since the standards took effect. Likewise,thanks in part to standards, the average power consumption of a new washer is nearly 70 percent lower than a new unit in 1990.
"Standards are one of the few ways to cheaply go after big chunks of energy savings," said Chris Calwell, a founder and senior researcher at Ecos, a consulting firm that specialises in energy efficiency.
Part of the problem is that many modern gadgets cannot entirely be turned off; even when not in use, they draw electricity while they await a signal from a remote control or wait to record a television program.
"We have entered this new era where essentially everything is on all the time,"said Alan Meier, a senior scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a leading expert on energy efficiency.
People can, of course, reduce this waste - but to do so takes a singleminded person.
Troast, of South Freeport, Maine, is just the kind of motivated homeowner willing to tackle such a project. His day job is selling energy efficiency equipment through an online business. He was not put off by the idea of hunting behind cabinets to locate every power supply and gadget, like those cable boxes, Web routers or computers that glowed in the dark.
The Troasts cut their monthly energy use by around 16 percent, partly by plugging their computers and entertainment devices into smart power strips.The strips turn off when the electronics are not in use, cutting power consumption to zero.
While Troast's experience demonstrates that consumers can limit the power wasted by inactive devices, another problem is not as easily solved:Many products now require large amounts of power to run.
The biggest offender is the flat-screen television. As liquid crystal displays and plasma technologies replace the old cathode ray tubes, and as screen sizes increase, the new televisions need more power than older models do. And with all those gorgeous new televisions in their living rooms, Americans are spending more time than ever watching TV,averaging five hours a day.
The result is a surge in electricity use by TVs, which can draw more power in a year than some refrigerators now on the market. Energy experts say that manufacturers have paid too little attention to the power consumption of televisions,in part because of the absence of federal regulation.
Another power drain is the video game console, which is found in 40 percent of American households. Energy experts - and many frustrated parents - say that since saving games is difficult, children often keep the consoles switched on so they can pick up where they left off.
Noah Horowitz, at the Natural Resources Defense Council, calculated that the nation's gaming consoles, like the Xbox 360 from Microsoft and the Sony PlayStation 3, use about the same amount of electricity each year as San Diego, the ninth-largest city in country.
Mandatory efficiency standards for electronic devices would force manufacturers to redesign their products, or spend money adding components that better control power use. Many manufacturers fight such mandates because they would increase costs, and they also claim the mandates would stifle innovation in a fast-changing industry.
The government has never aggressively tackled the television issue because of opposition from the consumer electronics lobby in Washington, experts say. In 1987, before televisions had swelled into such power hogs, Congress gave the Energy Department - which generally carries out the standards the option of setting efficiency rules for TVs.
But industry opposition derailed an effort in the 1990s to use that authority,according to Steve Nadel of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. A more recent attempt to require home electronics to use no more than 1 watt of power in standby mode met the same fate.
The federal government has moved forward on only two standards for electronics, covering battery chargers and external power supplies.
In the absence of federal action, a few states have moved on their own.The California Energy Commission just proposed new standards for televisions that would cut their power consumption in half by 2013. But that effort has set off a storm of protest from manufacturers and their trade group, the Consumer Electronics Association.(It is still expected to pass, in November.)
A spokesman for the industry said that government regulations could not keep up with the pace of technological change.
"Mandates ignore the fundamental nature of the industry that innovates due to consumer demand and technological developments, not regulations,"said Douglas Johnson, the senior director of technology policy at the association.
Johnson said that California's limits on manufacturers, which he called arbitrary, might delay or even prohibit some features of new devices. Instead,he praised the government's voluntary Energy Star program, which he says encourages efficiency without sacrificing innovation.
"Mandatory limits, such as we see in California, threaten to raise prices for consumers and reduce consumer choice," he said.
Estimates vary regarding how much a mandatory efficiency program for gadgets would cost consumers. For some changes, like making sure devices draw minimal power in standby mode, experts say the cost may be only a few extra cents.
At the other extreme, the most energyefficient of today's televisions can cost $100 more than the least energy-efficient.
With two laptop-loving children and a Jack Russell terrier hemmed in by an electric fence, Peter Troast figured his household used a lot of power. Just how much power did not really hit him until the night the family turned off the overhead lights at their home in Maine and began hunting gadgets that glowed in the dark.
"It was amazing to see all these lights blinking," Troast said.
As goes the Troast household, so goes the planet.
Electricity use from power-hungry gadgets is rising fast all over the world.The fancy new flat-panel televisions everyone has been buying in recent years have turned out to be bigger power hogs than some refrigerators.
The proliferation of personal computers, iPods, cell phones, game consoles and all the rest amounts to the fastestgrowing source of power demand in the world. Americans now have about 25 consumer electronic products in every household, compared with just three in 1980.
Worldwide, consumer electronics now represent 15 percent of household power demand, and that is expected to triple over the next two decades, according to the International Energy Agency, making it more difficult to tackle the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global warming.
To satisfy the demand from gadgets will require building the equivalent of 560 coal-fired power plants, or 230 nuclear plants, according to the agency.
Most energy experts see only one solution: mandatory efficiency rules specifying how much power devices may use.
Appliances like refrigerators are covered by such rules in the United States. But efforts to cover consumer electronics like televisions and game consoles have been repeatedly derailed by manufacturers worried about the higher cost of meeting the standards.That has become a problem as the spread of such gadgets counters efficiency gains made in recent years in appliances.
In 1990, refrigerator efficiency standards went into effect in the United States.Today, new refrigerators are fancier than ever, but their power consumption has been slashed by about 45 percent since the standards took effect. Likewise,thanks in part to standards, the average power consumption of a new washer is nearly 70 percent lower than a new unit in 1990.
"Standards are one of the few ways to cheaply go after big chunks of energy savings," said Chris Calwell, a founder and senior researcher at Ecos, a consulting firm that specialises in energy efficiency.
Part of the problem is that many modern gadgets cannot entirely be turned off; even when not in use, they draw electricity while they await a signal from a remote control or wait to record a television program.
"We have entered this new era where essentially everything is on all the time,"said Alan Meier, a senior scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a leading expert on energy efficiency.
People can, of course, reduce this waste - but to do so takes a singleminded person.
Troast, of South Freeport, Maine, is just the kind of motivated homeowner willing to tackle such a project. His day job is selling energy efficiency equipment through an online business. He was not put off by the idea of hunting behind cabinets to locate every power supply and gadget, like those cable boxes, Web routers or computers that glowed in the dark.
The Troasts cut their monthly energy use by around 16 percent, partly by plugging their computers and entertainment devices into smart power strips.The strips turn off when the electronics are not in use, cutting power consumption to zero.
While Troast's experience demonstrates that consumers can limit the power wasted by inactive devices, another problem is not as easily solved:Many products now require large amounts of power to run.
The biggest offender is the flat-screen television. As liquid crystal displays and plasma technologies replace the old cathode ray tubes, and as screen sizes increase, the new televisions need more power than older models do. And with all those gorgeous new televisions in their living rooms, Americans are spending more time than ever watching TV,averaging five hours a day.
The result is a surge in electricity use by TVs, which can draw more power in a year than some refrigerators now on the market. Energy experts say that manufacturers have paid too little attention to the power consumption of televisions,in part because of the absence of federal regulation.
Another power drain is the video game console, which is found in 40 percent of American households. Energy experts - and many frustrated parents - say that since saving games is difficult, children often keep the consoles switched on so they can pick up where they left off.
Noah Horowitz, at the Natural Resources Defense Council, calculated that the nation's gaming consoles, like the Xbox 360 from Microsoft and the Sony PlayStation 3, use about the same amount of electricity each year as San Diego, the ninth-largest city in country.
Mandatory efficiency standards for electronic devices would force manufacturers to redesign their products, or spend money adding components that better control power use. Many manufacturers fight such mandates because they would increase costs, and they also claim the mandates would stifle innovation in a fast-changing industry.
The government has never aggressively tackled the television issue because of opposition from the consumer electronics lobby in Washington, experts say. In 1987, before televisions had swelled into such power hogs, Congress gave the Energy Department - which generally carries out the standards the option of setting efficiency rules for TVs.
But industry opposition derailed an effort in the 1990s to use that authority,according to Steve Nadel of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. A more recent attempt to require home electronics to use no more than 1 watt of power in standby mode met the same fate.
The federal government has moved forward on only two standards for electronics, covering battery chargers and external power supplies.
In the absence of federal action, a few states have moved on their own.The California Energy Commission just proposed new standards for televisions that would cut their power consumption in half by 2013. But that effort has set off a storm of protest from manufacturers and their trade group, the Consumer Electronics Association.(It is still expected to pass, in November.)
A spokesman for the industry said that government regulations could not keep up with the pace of technological change.
"Mandates ignore the fundamental nature of the industry that innovates due to consumer demand and technological developments, not regulations,"said Douglas Johnson, the senior director of technology policy at the association.
Johnson said that California's limits on manufacturers, which he called arbitrary, might delay or even prohibit some features of new devices. Instead,he praised the government's voluntary Energy Star program, which he says encourages efficiency without sacrificing innovation.
"Mandatory limits, such as we see in California, threaten to raise prices for consumers and reduce consumer choice," he said.
Estimates vary regarding how much a mandatory efficiency program for gadgets would cost consumers. For some changes, like making sure devices draw minimal power in standby mode, experts say the cost may be only a few extra cents.
At the other extreme, the most energyefficient of today's televisions can cost $100 more than the least energy-efficient.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
ELECTRICAL-APPLIANCE SALES DOWN AS CONSUMERS TIGHTEN THEIR BELTS
Sales of electrical appliances are expected to decline this year, another victim of the eonomic downturn that has made Thai Consumers more cautious in their spending habits, according to a report by Gfk Retail and Technology (Thailand).
Gfk based its report on sample panel stores' over-the-counter sales.
It estimates that the value of the consumer-electronics market, which includes audio-visual products such as televisions, DVD players and digital portable multimedia players, will be Bt37.7 billion this year, a 7.8-per-cent decrease from 2008.
The visual product market is expected to decline by 5.57 per cent, with products such as flat-screen TVs seeing the biggest drop. Manufactures have turned their focus to more profitable products such as slim TVs, LCD TVs and plasma TVs.
LCD TV sales in the second quarter increased by a significant 167 per cent to 200, 400 units from the first quarter, while those of plassma TVs rose by 30.38 per cent to 20,600 units.
Despite the skyrocketing unit sales of those products, it is estimated that the total demand for colour televisions in 2009 will reach 3 million units, a decrease of 4.4 per cent from last year, with flat-screen TVs declining the furthest.
DVD players have become a mass-market product, Gfk said in its report, with many manufacturers now offering products with different functions at various price levels.
The product is entering the mature stage, the report said, as marketing of new disc-player technologies such as Blu-ray becomes more sidespread.
It is estimated that total market demand for DVD players and Bluray disc palyers thsi year will be 3,190,000 and 7,000 units, respectively.
Gfk believed that portable media players such as MP3 and MP4 players have reached market maturity, with many substitution products such as mobile phones ans smart phones appearing.
The firm estimates the market for portable media players will reach about 316,000 units, worth Bt945 million, by the end of this year.
The MP3-player market is slowly declining as the number of brands devreases, unit sales stabilise and prices fall, according to the report.
The degital camera market this year is expected to drop by 10 per cent from last year in terms of units and 6 per cent in terms of value, mainly due to a decline in consumers' spending power.
However, while the market for digital single-lens reflex cameras grew about 10 per cent in terms of units from 70,000 last year to 77,000 this year, the market value is forecast to fall by 6 percent.
For the home-appliances segment, the largest among electrical appliances, Gfk estimates market value will reach Bt42 billion.
The number of units sold in the first half of this year was slightly higher than last year but market value was flat.
There are two home-appliace segments-major domestic home appliances (MDAs) and small domestic home appliances (SDAs).
The first comprises refrigerators, washing machines, air -conditioners and microwave ovens, while the latter consists of rice cookers, irons, food-preparation devices, vacuum leaners, hair dryers, hair stylers, shavers and electronic fans.
MDA market value is expected to exceed Bt33.2 billion.
SDAs are expected to achieve a higher growth rate in unit terms than MDAs because of pricing and the economic situation. Price-cutting is still the main strategy for pushing sales in the MDA market.
Broken down by type of product,1,195,000 refrigerators are expected to be sold this year (maintaining the 2008 level), with a value of Bt9.874 billion, or zero growth compared with last year.
Refrigerators have a high penetration rate-roughly 84 per cent.
Because of tight competition among South Korean, Japanese and Chinese brands, demand for washing machines this year is forecasted at 1,225,000 units worth Bt9.85 billion, for a decrease of 1 per cent in unit terms and flat growth in value.
For air conditioners, the total market is expected to stay flat from last year at roughly 584,000 units worth about Bt12.47 billion.
Gfk based its report on sample panel stores' over-the-counter sales.
It estimates that the value of the consumer-electronics market, which includes audio-visual products such as televisions, DVD players and digital portable multimedia players, will be Bt37.7 billion this year, a 7.8-per-cent decrease from 2008.
The visual product market is expected to decline by 5.57 per cent, with products such as flat-screen TVs seeing the biggest drop. Manufactures have turned their focus to more profitable products such as slim TVs, LCD TVs and plasma TVs.
LCD TV sales in the second quarter increased by a significant 167 per cent to 200, 400 units from the first quarter, while those of plassma TVs rose by 30.38 per cent to 20,600 units.
Despite the skyrocketing unit sales of those products, it is estimated that the total demand for colour televisions in 2009 will reach 3 million units, a decrease of 4.4 per cent from last year, with flat-screen TVs declining the furthest.
DVD players have become a mass-market product, Gfk said in its report, with many manufacturers now offering products with different functions at various price levels.
The product is entering the mature stage, the report said, as marketing of new disc-player technologies such as Blu-ray becomes more sidespread.
It is estimated that total market demand for DVD players and Bluray disc palyers thsi year will be 3,190,000 and 7,000 units, respectively.
Gfk believed that portable media players such as MP3 and MP4 players have reached market maturity, with many substitution products such as mobile phones ans smart phones appearing.
The firm estimates the market for portable media players will reach about 316,000 units, worth Bt945 million, by the end of this year.
The MP3-player market is slowly declining as the number of brands devreases, unit sales stabilise and prices fall, according to the report.
The degital camera market this year is expected to drop by 10 per cent from last year in terms of units and 6 per cent in terms of value, mainly due to a decline in consumers' spending power.
However, while the market for digital single-lens reflex cameras grew about 10 per cent in terms of units from 70,000 last year to 77,000 this year, the market value is forecast to fall by 6 percent.
For the home-appliances segment, the largest among electrical appliances, Gfk estimates market value will reach Bt42 billion.
The number of units sold in the first half of this year was slightly higher than last year but market value was flat.
There are two home-appliace segments-major domestic home appliances (MDAs) and small domestic home appliances (SDAs).
The first comprises refrigerators, washing machines, air -conditioners and microwave ovens, while the latter consists of rice cookers, irons, food-preparation devices, vacuum leaners, hair dryers, hair stylers, shavers and electronic fans.
MDA market value is expected to exceed Bt33.2 billion.
SDAs are expected to achieve a higher growth rate in unit terms than MDAs because of pricing and the economic situation. Price-cutting is still the main strategy for pushing sales in the MDA market.
Broken down by type of product,1,195,000 refrigerators are expected to be sold this year (maintaining the 2008 level), with a value of Bt9.874 billion, or zero growth compared with last year.
Refrigerators have a high penetration rate-roughly 84 per cent.
Because of tight competition among South Korean, Japanese and Chinese brands, demand for washing machines this year is forecasted at 1,225,000 units worth Bt9.85 billion, for a decrease of 1 per cent in unit terms and flat growth in value.
For air conditioners, the total market is expected to stay flat from last year at roughly 584,000 units worth about Bt12.47 billion.
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