Sony quits plasma market for reals

Yeah, Sony's been threatening to do it for years, and haven't been putting out plasmas in the US since 2005, but Sony finally is getting serious about quitting the low-profit (for them, at least) world of plasma -- and it would appear they've finally done it. Sony has been seeing a sharp decline in shipments, from 300,000 in 2004 to 100,000 in 2005, and profits have been slim due to the lack of their own plasma display factory; they plan to increase LCD shipments to pick up the slack, and hope to increase their shipment ratio of 40-inch plus LCDs by 50% before year's end. They've also contracted construction on an eighth-generation LCD plant, which should start production in fall 2007, and handle 50,000 glass substrates a month. Sony hopes to boost LCD sales 33% in 2007 to a whopping eight million units, and if it means bigger displays and lower prices we sure won't be complaining.

[Via HD Beat]

[anta @ Aug 4th 2006 1:06PM]

well at least sony is helping make LCDs less expensive.

[Sean @ Aug 4th 2006 1:19PM]

fo REAL fo real?

[Chris @ Aug 4th 2006 1:27PM]

lol this post and comment is funny... its sony do you really think the maker of possibly the most over priced hardware in the industry is actually going to push for lower prices? No there going to maintain their price gap and just increase shipments ... AKA more overall profit :)

[Sean @ Aug 4th 2006 1:27PM]

Sony still has the highest cost/performance ratio in the large screen television industry. Considering they jointly own the licensing rights, they are in no way helping to make LCDs cheaper for consumers.

Technologies like LcOs and DLP have proven to be superior to LCD in the entertainment room leaving Sony in the dust. Sony must stop backing its own horses (ie MiniDisc, Beta, UMD, soon to be BluRay) and start using their incredible industrial design team to make products that people want with technologies that people want. Lest they will find themselves chasing Samsung's tail for many years to come.

[David @ Aug 4th 2006 1:27PM]

Now there are some words I never thought I'd read in the same sentence: "Sony" and "less expensive". ;-)

[Borik @ Aug 4th 2006 1:35PM]

How Did u get "DLP have proven to be superior to LCD",
with LCD resolution 1920x1080 and great viewing angle...

yea there is bunch of cheaper(as in lower performance) LCD with worth resolution but lets not making generalizations...

[sdsdv10 @ Aug 4th 2006 1:35PM]

Sean,

Are you sure about DLP. This links seems to suggest they are already in that market.

http://www.passador.com/Televisions-Flat-Panel-Televisions-DLP-Tvs-Sony-DLP-TVs.aspx

[Drew @ Aug 4th 2006 1:40PM]

They DO have LCoS TV's. Also, it wouldn't make sense to abandon formats that they've spent so much money researching, especially when a few formats HAVE been successful (I'd consider MiniDisc to be successful in Asia at least).

[Lorenzo @ Aug 4th 2006 1:44PM]

Re: "Technologies like LcOs and DLP have proven to be superior to LCD in the entertainment room leaving Sony in the dust."

Sony IS in the LCoS business. Theirs is called SXRD, a tweaked/improved version of LCoS, and it is doing quite well. Please be more informed next time. DLP? What a laugh! I, for one will not touch it because it just can't touch plasma's quality, and in the realm of RPTVs, is far inferior to SXRD.

[Joshua Cartu @ Aug 4th 2006 1:55PM]

Listen, I love Sony as much as the next guy but let's be serious. Sony's XBR plasma displays have always been considerably more expensive than almost any other offering. I mean, come on, their 60 was almost as much as I could buy a Runco plasma wall with the scaler included. For the time I was in the market, the 50 and 60 Pioneer Elites were "The Business" and could be had in some cases for thousands less.

Sony has been trying for some time to add value to their displays with new tech that is hard to understand. They did, however offer some of the most appealing designs. Especially the floating 60 XBR I saw a few years ago. In summary, I'd say it's simply the price difference. Most people who want a 50 aren't willing to pay 1.5 to 2x as much as they would for a Philips, Pioneer, or Panasonic. All of which make absolutely fantastic displays.

[archie4oz @ Aug 4th 2006 2:09PM]

"Technologies like LcOs and DLP have proven to be superior to LCD in the entertainment room leaving Sony in the dust. Sony must stop backing its own horses (ie MiniDisc, Beta, UMD, soon to be BluRay) and start using their incredible industrial design team to make products that people want with technologies that people want. Lest they will find themselves chasing Samsung's tail for many years to come."

You do realize that Sony's SXRD sets *are* LCoS displays, and that the S-LCD factory that churns out panels for their Bravias is a joint venture between Sony and Samsumg?

[James @ Aug 4th 2006 2:12PM]

David: I got one for ya..
"Every other electronic company is less expensive than Sony."

Haha! I'd agree with them though. I don't really like Plasma screens, LCDs and DLP look nice. Hopefully they can be of some kind of competition though...

[OyoyoY123 @ Aug 4th 2006 2:40PM]

What.....what's that picture??????

[r @ Aug 4th 2006 3:23PM]

the picture on the tv? Its a space shuttle on top of a 747. That's how they move the shuttle from place to place. You didnt think they just built the shuttle on the launch pad, did you?

[casualsuede @ Aug 4th 2006 3:30PM]

Sony doesn't even make their own LCD's I heard. They own production facilities with Samsung and Samsung people was recently quoted as saying that they get the best technology first, before Sony.

[Handle IT @ Aug 4th 2006 3:47PM]

The Sony Style store near me has a 60 inch plasma that they are using as part of their BluRay display. The guy working there says you can see the burn in when they turn it off at night. Customers that bought them also loved how their energy bill went up after the TV was installed.

[Fox @ Aug 4th 2006 3:52PM]

>>the Koreans (samsung, etc) are chasing these guys out of the market.

Well, dumb-ass, Samsung makes their LCDs with Sony, and the plasma market is pretty much dead after LCD prices have dropped so dramatically.

Also, while LG has taken the lead in shipments on plasma, that is due to cheaper low-end plasma, Matsushita still leads the high-end market, but overall the plasma market is contracting dramatically.

[Will @ Aug 4th 2006 4:00PM]

r,
You're partially right. Check out the wikipedia article on crawler-transporter. That is what NASA uses to get the shuttle from assembly to the pad. The modified 747 is for bringing the shuttle back to California when they have to land at Edwards AFB instead of Cape Canaveral

[r @ Aug 4th 2006 5:26PM]

i guess i should have been more clear. i meant for long distances. i didnt think anyone would have thought you'd strap the shuttle to a 747 for a few mile jaunt from hanger to launch pad. (if even a few miles).

[Guruboy @ Aug 4th 2006 5:51PM]

Who cares? Plasmas are so old school it is not even funny. I am perfectly happy still with my 20-inch Sony Trinitron CRT from 18 years ago. Still works like a charm with great picture! Maybe soon it will be worth more because it will be an antique!

[J.Neutron @ Aug 4th 2006 8:02PM]

Good Plasma sucked anyway. And don't respond telling me how much your dad's plasma and his yamaha dvd player from best buy are sweet!!!111 lol. Because Im not coming back to read this.

[Larry The Cable Guy @ Aug 4th 2006 8:54PM]

Samsung released a 46" plasma with Windows XP built-in, now THAT i want to buy.

story titled: Samsung releases commercial 40", 46" LCD Displays with Windows XP Built-in, check it @ http://blog.americasnewstoday.com/2006/07/25/samsung-releases-commercial-40-46-lcd-displays-with-windows-xp-builtin.aspx

[Cajun_Mike @ Aug 5th 2006 12:55PM]

A lot of ignorant comments in this thread. While I'm not a Sony fan boy, their SXRD (Sony's version of LCoS) rear projection TV's are the highest rated and videophile preferred products on the market right now. Their Ruby SXRD front projector is also the highest rated in it's category. Here is a simple link that is just one of the many places that rates the Sony SXRD as the most outstanding large display on the market... http://www.ultimateavmag.com/buyersguides/rearprojectiontvs/

[n2 @ Aug 6th 2006 1:54PM]

Who knew Sony was even still making plasmas? I thought they quit a while ago.

I have one from over a year ago, that I received for free, and it's nothing special. The retail price was way above any comparable set. And the included features are lacking. No wonder Panasonic does better in plasmas. I felt Sony really wasn't even trying. The only nice compliant I can make, is that Sony stand for their plasma is solid, and weighs like it's made of granite.

[hewerdown @ Aug 6th 2006 11:27PM]

The picture does bring back a singular memory. I was driving along in my home town of Orem, Utah some years back with my wife and in-laws in the car when I glanced up from the road to a spectacularly incongruous sight - drifting lazily across the town, so low as to have the mountains as a backdrop and simply huge, was the space shuttle atop its 747!

"There's the space shuttle!!" I exclaimed, somewhat absurdly, and we watched in awe as the pair tooled across our town, right in front of us, and headed north toward Salt Lake City.

I learned later that day that one of our senators (Bennett, I think) pulled some strings and got the pair to not only stop to refuel in Utah, but to fly low and slow across the cities of the Wasatch Front to give everyone a good look.

I've never had an ordinary day so shockingly interrupted by the bizarre than to glance at the sky above our quiet town and see a huge spacecraft floating by!

[ChrisMcCaw (McCawEntertainment) @ Sep 27th 2006 3:27PM]

I'm surprised at how cheap a 32" CRT Sony TV can be these days. I know the CRT is suppose to go the way of the dinosaur, but I paid about the same for a 24" Sanyo a year ago. I think the "when you buy Sony, you're paying for the name (prestige)" is finally disappearing as people realize, it's JUST another electronics manufactuer.

[inmypjs @ Dec 2nd 2007 1:09AM]

You're wrong. Sony still makes the best quality TVs out there. They made the best CRT in the Wega XBR line. Their plasmas were also the best until they stopped making it so naturally they were overtaken by Pioneer and Panasonic. Now, they make the best LCDs in the Bravia line and only Samsung can come close to it with their LED LCDs. They know they make the best TVs out there that's why you have to pay a premium for it. But best of all, "It's a Sony"...lol.