IFA International Preview - 2020 SPECIAL EDITION

I NEWS I
Market trends
Futuresource plots the course
and delivers important projections
TV DISPLAYS
The COVID-19 lockdown actually
benefited TV sales in many countries
during H1 as consumers withdrew
into their homes and focused
more on home entertainment. TV
provided both a source of news
and a distraction from world events.
However, the outlook for the rest of
the year is uncertain at best, with the
economic impact likely to be severe,
even if a feared widespread ‘second
wave’ of the virus does not occur. In
view of this – and the postponement
of major sporting events such as the
Olympics, Futuresource has lowered
its Pre-COVID Global TV market
forecast by 22m units resulting in a
7.2% unit decline in 2020 Vs 2019,
with a CAGR to 2024 of 2.9%.
As part of the premium segment,
OLED uptake is likely to be hampered
by the COVID-19 economic impact,
as consumers economise. OLED
is forecast to reach 3.4m units
worldwide in 2020, representing 1.5%
of global shipments in 2020, rising to
nearly 4% in 2024.
With already existing barriers such as
lack of content and high prices being
exacerbated by the pandemic, 8K
LG-8K-TV
shipments are set to reach just 495K
units for 2020, representing only 0.2%
of the market. As manufacturers aim
to make the TV the control centre of
the Smart Home, while improving
the user experience at home,
TV shipments with built-in voice
capability will reach 51.8m units by
2024. Most brands however will stay
with the “Works with” strategy which
is more cost-effective.
4K UHD continues to grow its share
of the TV market; 62% of shipments
in 2020, as brands continue to
transition their ranges from HD in
order to boost ASPs.
The trend towards larger screen
sizes will ensure sales in Europe of
TVs above 40” will fare better than
smaller sizes in the aftermath of
COVID. Panels between 40” and 69”
are forecast to fall by 4% in 2020 and
a CAGR to 2024 of 2.9%. However,
unit sales of screens of 70” and above
will increase by 7% this year, with a
CAGR to 2024 of 15%
Source - Futuresource
There is probably no better time or place
to track industry market trends than at
IFA. This year is no exception, despite the
bedlam caused by the Covid-19 crisis.
In each edition, IFA International will be
covering several areas of importance.
In this edition, we look at TV displays
and Wearables / Hearables.
WEARABLES/HEARABLES
Overall, the wearables market
as a whole is still expected to
grow in 2020 despite Covid.
The increased consumer
awareness around health and
wellbeing fits in with the major
USPs of wearable devices, and
future product developments
are expected to expand on
this trend.
The emerging
ecosystem of
connected devices
will also become a
key source of growth
for wearables. The
interaction of the
smartwatch and
hearable elevates the
consumer proposition of
these devices; the audio
and voice capabilities of the
hearable improve on those
currently available on the wrist,
while the biometric tracking
done in the ear is also of greater
quality in terms of accuracy and
reliability.
Google’s pending acquisition
of Fitbit, if approved, would
be a significant shift in the
competitive landscape for
smartwatches. Currently, the
market is dominated by Apple,
with Samsung and Fitbit
following. WearOS devices
have struggled to attain notable
market share in wearables, but
with the acquisition of Fitbit,
Google will hope to propel itself
into a competitive position to
rival Apple. Google are aiming
to create an ecosystem that
rivals Apple, with its hearables
– the Pixel Buds – a rival to
the Airpods, and wrist-worn
wearables are another frontier
of this competitive dynamic.
Google’s wearables strategy
will
not only
involve the continuing
development of WearOS, but
will also likely see the vendor
look to develop its own Pixel
watch as well as continue to
support the Fitbit brand
Source - Futuresource
8 IFA INTERNATIONAL • MONDAY 31 ST AUGUST 2020
www.ifa-international.org