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.
Monday, December 7, 2009
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.
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