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The share of large-sized panel televisions that are 40-inch and above have tripled in the last five years helped by a combination of tailwinds such as reduction in prices, rising incomes, increasing internet penetration, higher bandwidth availability, and rising consumption of over-the-top (OTT) streaming services, acording to CRISIL rating agency. Currently, the large-size panel segment accounts for 40% of the market share.
CRISIL Research expects the share to cross the 50% mark by fiscal 2027 if the positive factors continue to help the segment.
The rating agency noted that the sharp fall in prices of large panel TVs by about 35-40% in the past five years, has been the most important factor. A 55-inch TV, which was priced at around Rs 100,000 in 2017, is now available for Rs 55,000-65,000. In addition, the segment has witnessed intense competition with the entry of Xiaomi, Vu Technologies, One Plus, etc., resulting in a price war to capture market.
“The number of brands in the space has doubled in the past 5-7 years, with over 70 brands jostling for customer wallet at present. Also, there was surplus capacity in the 43-inch screen size as Western countries had already moved to larger-sized screens prior to 2018,” said Pushan Sharma, Director, CRISIL Research.
Improving internet penetration and more streaming services
India has seen a significant improvement in internet penetration and a rapid increase in OTT entertainment, which viewers want to consume on bigger TV screens. The country’s internet users have surged in the last few year and the internet penetration has reached approximately 62% in fiscal 2022 from less than 20% of the total population in fiscal 2015.
Consistent and reliable internet connections, with higher bandwidth, have increased the viewership of streaming services from a negligible number in 2015 to around one-fourth of the total population in 2021, as per industry sources, the rating agency said in the report.
The rating agency said that the important factor for a surge in internet users was the decline in entry-level broadband plan tariffs to Rs 399-499 in recent times from Rs 899-999 in 2018 and considerable increase speeds. This allowed users to stream HD quality videos without buffering.
Another factor that led to higher demand for large TVs is the release of films on streaming services and a spurt in online education amid the pandemic. As consumers were hesitant to visit multiplexes due to lockdown and covid-related restrictions, money was spent on in-home entertainment during the peak of the pandemic.
‘The pandemic has changed family viewing habits and rise in fibre-to-the-home services will further improve broadband services, thereby aiding adoption of larger panel TVs,” said Elizabeth Master, Associate Director, CRISIL Research
Further, rising per capita income has improved affordability. The per capita income rose 10.9% and 9.3%, respectively, in fiscal 2018 and fiscal 2019, coinciding with the decline in prices of panel TVs. According to the rating agency, the trend is expected to continue over the longer term.
Stocks To Watch
Some of the companies that are into manufacturing of television sets are Dixon Technologies, MIRC Electronics, BPL, Sharp India, Calcom Vision and Salora International.