Total DTV Sales Smash 5 Million Units

14-Apr-03

Celebrating the latest milestone in the analog-to-digital television (DTV) transition, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) announced that cumulative factory-to-dealer unit sales of DTV products surpassed the five-million mark in February. CEA's DTV sales figures represent integrated sets and displays. CEA reported from the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Convention that February unit sales of DTV products reached 241,279 and dollar sales totaled $409,173,189. When combined with DTV sales since product introduction in the fourth quarter of 1998, the February numbers bring the total DTV sales figure to 5,139,775 units, and dollar investment in DTV to $9,298,175,695. Commenting on the sales milestone, CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro said, ""Consumers are speaking for the consumer electronics industry and our part in making HDTV a reality. ""But in celebrating this new milestone, it also is important to recognize that this momentum can only continue if all related industries and government officials continue to drive the transition forward. First and foremost, broadcasters must commit not only to getting on air in digital, but to doing so at full power. As CEA has said in many DTV conference sessions this week, only 780 of the 1,304 commercial broadcast stations in the country are on air in digital. ""We invite the broadcast community to join us in promoting the benefits of over-the-air television to consumers. Current CEA promotional activities include our AntennaWeb.org program, which helps consumers identify the right type of antenna via an easy-to-use Web site, and RetailZone.com, which also allows consumers to identify the available channels and HDTV programming in their area. ""Finally, we need the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to act quickly in adopting the historic 'plug-and-play' agreement reached last December between the cable and consumer electronics industries. This agreement will allow the 70 million cable households in the U.S. to partake of this phenomenal HDTV transition."" For more information about the CEA, visit www.ce.org.

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