What is the True Market for Huge-Screen TVs?
January 9, 2007, 6:42 PM
Scott Fulton, BetaNews: Every year, there's a little battle going on at CES to see who can display the real-world television (not some mockup, not one of those video wall displays, but a real TV) with the largest display. This year, Sharp seems to hold the prize at 108". But is there a real market for these things? We asked our analyst, Sharon Fisher, to look into this in-depth.
Sharon Fisher, Senior CES Analyst, BetaNews: The obvious first answer to "Why a 108-inch television?" is "It's a guy thing," but that's only sort-of true, according to the Consumer Electronics Association.
"It's the excitement of having 'the next big thing,'" said Megan Pollock, a spokeswoman for the organization. These days, a 42" television is the minimal standard, and when consumers are making such a major purchase it's a joint decision between men and women, she said.
In addition, today's flat-screen televisions can be more easily placed inside furniture or behind a mirror, Pollock said. "Those things do appeal to women," she said.
The big correlating factor with HDTV purchases – many of which tend to be larger – are sports fans, according to a new survey by CEA released here at the show. Nearly 50% of respondents said they had purchased an HDTV to watch a specific sporting event, such as the Super Bowl (13%), the Daytona 500 (7%), the NBA Finals (6%) and the college bowl games (5%). In addition, nearly 60% of HDTV owners consider themselves to be sports fans.
And of those sports fans, 39% are women, Pollock said.
In fact, not only will 29% of sports fans base their decision on which sporting event to watch on whether it's in HDTV, but they also report giving preferential treatment to those advertisers who have HDTV ads during an HDTV sporting event, Pollock said.
That said, most of the people blogging about Sharp's 108-inch tv – which would be 9 feet diagonally across and nearly 8 feet high – had male-identified names (including the one guy who sniffed that he had a 10-foot projection television, and really, after that it would be hard for him to go back to anything else). The one blogger with a female-identified name said it made her think (presumably unfavorably) of the wall screens in Fahrenheit 451.
Scott Fulton: Sharon, during the BCS bowl games this season, I saw ads for electronics devices, including big-screen TVs, that were clearly geared toward the female viewer. These were during football games, mind you, so there would be a male audience, but they obviously played to women...
Sharon Fisher: You mean, like, during the Fiesta Bowl?
Scott Fulton: Yea, during the Nightmare Bowl...Some were more sensible, using lines like, "The first big-screen television for women." Others had that voice-dubbed five-year-old with the elephant showing off her little jewelry box and saying, "It's the mee-rs."...I'm wondering, "Who are the Meers?"...
Sharon Fisher: Perhaps they figure, "Women won't understand the technology, so put it in terms they understand. Like mirrors. And put a kid in it. Women love kids."
Scott Fulton: Anyway, suppose the male-dominated executive suites of the electronics manufacturers got it in their heads that women buy things. What do you think? Does the selling point for high-dollar electronics like huge-screen-TVs evaporate, or is there a latent market for these things among, say, the human race?
Sharon Fisher: Well, as the CEA says, it's becoming a joint decision, and the advantage of these new TVs, even the giant ones, is that they're flat and they take up less room. So what is happening (not universally, but generally) is that it's a compromise where the woman's input is that the living room not look like a movie theatre and that the TV can be hidden in some way. I'm old enough to remember console TVs that were available in different kinds of furniture styles, and that was essentially the same thing.
Here's another stat I want to show you: The Consumer Electronics Association also says that women influence 90% of all electronics purchases, and anecdotal reports indicate that women are becoming more technologically savvy. In other words, it's not just "But that TV goes better with the carpet."
Scott Fulton: So really, what that's saying is, 10% of all electronics purchases have no woman involved with them whatsoever.
Sharon Fisher: Yep.
Scott Fulton: Doesn't that say that women are more influential at deciding how the money is spent?
Sharon Fisher: Exactly.
Scott Fulton: So the CEA saying "it's becoming a joint decision," they're just now getting their heads out of the sand, aren't they?
Sharon Fisher: Unfortunately, they don't have any statistics on how many electronics purchases have no men involved with them whatsoever.
Scott Fulton: They didn't think to ask that, did they?
Sharon Fisher: You know, I wouldn't say that. The CEA has actually been very influential in tracking women's use of technology; in fact, they have annual awards for products that are particularly appealing to women. In fact, in 2002, the CEA released a survey noting that 58% of women surveyed responded that they would choose a high-definition television over a one-karat diamond ring, and 64% said they would choose a digital camera over half-karat diamond stud earrings.
Scott Fulton: That gives me an idea...
Sharon Fisher: Also in 2002, three out of every four women initiated the purchase of consumer electronics products themselves or along with their spouse or partner. Almost half (49%) of all electronics purchase decisions were initiated exclusively by women, up from 40% in 1998. So this is not really new.
Scott Fulton: Reminds me of the classic "The Simpsons" episode where Homer gives Marge a bowling ball for Christmas. "Aw-w-w, look, honey? A bowling ball! And with your husband's initials!"
Sharon Fisher: Results from another CEA survey showed that men and women share a desire for products that are easy to use and reliable. However, there are some differences. Women want lightweight products as well as products that increase personal safety. Men, however, are more concerned with the brand of the product and the entertainment value. The survey also suggested that women were tactile-oriented buyers - form factor is an important consideration.
Scott Fulton: Speaking of form factor, I'm looking forward to what your contacts are telling you on iPhone. Sharon, thanks.
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