DTV Sales Start Off Strong In 2001

1-Mar-01

Continuing with the phenomenal growth in sales from 2000, factory-to-dealer sales of digital television (DTV) products exceeded the 80,000 unit mark this January, according to figures released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). January sales of DTV televisions and monitors totaled 81,629 units, on dollar sales of more than $159 million, representing a unit increase of 234 percent over last January's figure. All indications point to further gains in 2001, as total sales increased by more than 400 percent in 2000 over 1999 sales.""January's sales figures represent a promising beginning for DTV in 2001,"" said Gary Shapiro, President and CEO of CEA. ""With an increasing variety of products expected this year and the certainty of a re-affirmed broadcast standard, 2001 is going to be another banner year for DTV.""Early unit sales growth of DTV is better than many of the industry's most successful products and consumer dollar investment in DTV - projected to reach nearly $5 billion by the end of 2001 - is exceeding that of other blockbuster consumer electronics products. Annual unit sales growth and dollar sales for DTV during its first four years on the market (1998-2001) is projected to surpass that of computers, VCRs, CD players and color TVs. CEA projects sales of DTV sets and displays to continue rapid growth in the coming years, with unit sales of 1.1 million this year, 2.1 million in 2002, 4 million in 2003, 5.4 million in 2004, 8 million in 2005 and 10.5 million in 2006.Source: CEA