UK: Digital Television Recorders gaining acceptance

United Kingdom, Consumer Electronics

Figures released by GfK for October 2007 suggest that there was a slowdown in growth of Consumer Electronics turnover during the second half of the month.

In particular, further vigorous price cutting in the TV segment meant that growth in this category in the last week of the month was as low as 12%, a modest result which was responsible for a fall in value of the total CE market in the same week (down 0.4%).

This seemed to bear out claims by other sources that retail sales had lost their buoyancy. However the market is resilient and total data for the following week (ending 10th November 2007) registered a 5.4% increase.

As Christmas approaches, it is important that other products in the Digital family are at the forefront of retailers’ line ups. There still has to be considerable mileage in Set Top Boxes, which have grown throughout 2007 and, given the significant declines during Q4 2006, can be expected to enjoy significant growth throughout the peak season.

At the upper end of this market, Digital Television Recorders (DTRs) finally seem to be gaining acceptance as replacement products for Video Recorders. Unit sales doubled between the year ending September 2006 and the equivalent period in 2007 accompanied by a creditable 66% increase in turnover.

There is also a hidden contribution from the DVD market. Unit sales of DVD Recorders with a Digital Tuner and Hard Disc Drive are almost as high as for Digital Television Recorders with twice the turnover!