EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW Kostas Vouzas Senior Director Business, TP Vision Philips Enters OLED Market Kostas Vouzas, TP Vision’s Senior Director Business, says the company is confident about the future of the TV market WITH DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPING AT A VERY FAST PACE, IT IS VITAL TO KEEP EVOLVING, ADAPTING AND ADVANCING We asked Mr Vouzas how business is evolving for TP Vision, and what the roadmap looks like (in business terms) for the next two to five years. In such a dynamic and fast paced industry and market, predictions are challenging. We are however confident about the future. Our 2016 product range is doing very well in the market and our products are being recognised by design and picture quality experts (IF, Red Dot and EISA awards). And with new products being launched at IFA such as the world’s only OLED 4k TV with Ambilight, we will keep advancing. The combination of award-winning picture quality and unique Ambilight will continue to provide our consumers with a TV viewing experience which is very difficult to match. You have launched some highly innovative products at this year’s show. Please tell us a little more about them. We have a very strong range in 2016. It is here at IFA that we have launched the world’s first and only OLED 4K TV with Ambilight. We believe the combination of our Perfect Pixel engine and Ambilight takes the OLED experience to the next level, creating a unique and unbelievably immersive viewing experience. Besides our OLED, we are honoured to see some of our 2016 products, already in the market across Europe, being recognised by design and picture quality experts. In fact, the beautiful new Philips 7101 series received honours from both the IF and Red Dot 2016 Product Awards, while the highly innovative 5231 small screen series with its unique ‘all-in-one solution’ that combines a TV, Bluetooth speaker and monitor functionality, was distinguished by a Red Dot product design award. And more importantly, our 65-inch 7601 set has won an EISA Award for Best Buy Large Screen 2016-2017 confirming Philips TV’s commitment to bring the best picture quality available to larger segments of the market, from premium to more mainstream TV sets. The Philips 7600 series uses intelligent local brightness zones in the screen for deep blacks and radiant colours that burst out of the screen. And with HDR Premium, enjoy a viewing experience just as the director intended. The quality of 7600 series is visible right through to the unique open chrome ‘V’ stands. This year at IFA we are seeing the true emergence of OLED as a TV technology - having been limited to just one or two players before. How do you see OLED progressing in general and what kind of new products might we see in the coming years (i.e. smaller sizes?)… At TP Vision we are always looking into offering consumers TVs with meaningful innovations that matter to them. When it comes to OLED, we’ve been closely following the technology and wanted to wait until a certain level of maturity had been attained before introducing our OLED set. On top of this, the arrival of HDR content has given OLED a natural role at the premium end of the market. So, we believe this was the right moment to bring our Philips TV uniqueness to it. But for us, this was not enough. And that’s why we worked very hard and launched a very special OLED. Advanced by Philips Perfect Pixel Engine enhancing the already 16
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW at IFA TV IS BECOMING THE CENTRAL HUB OF CONNECTED HOMES excellent picture quality to a stunning new level; powered by Android smart TV; with the integrated 6.1 sound system delivering incredible sound performance and last, but not least, our Ambilight, the Philips OLED 4K TV gives you a TV viewing experience like no other OLED can. Philips 55-inch 901F television comes with Perfect Pixel Ultra HD engine and produces superior black levels that most of the other brands cannot match. The Perfect Pixel Ultra HD engine has the processing power of four billion pixels that allows the system to continually monitor and adjust each individual pixel for sharpness and brightness. As per the future of OLED, we will continue to monitor technological and market developments closely and will continue to advance. Please could you tell us more about the colour reproduction of the OLED TV? Colour reproduction is also exceptional thanks to the wide colour gamut of the OLED panel and Philips’ Perfect Colour system that includes a 17-bit colour booster and intelligent colour processing. The result is the accurate reproduction of more than 2,250 trillion: brilliantly vibrant colours, including the display of ultra-realistic skin tones and crisper, cleaner whites. Motion sharpness also sets new standards thanks to the inherent speed of the OLED panel and the incredible four billion pixel processing power of Philips’ Perfect Natural motion technology which accurately interpolates and inserts additional image frames, ensuring that even the fastest moving Ultra HD images are reproduced as fluid motion while maintain exceptional sharpness. Ambilight is one of your key differentiators for Philips TVs. How important is this for the brand going forward? Ambilight is what makes Philips TV so unique and different indeed. It is in our DNA and we strongly believe this exclusive technology offers such an immersive and outstanding viewing experience, no other TV can match. And the market and customers seem to agree with us. Some 75% of our Ambilight users are so hooked on it that it is very high on their priority when buying a new TV. We are offering Ambilight in a larger range of our products and we constantly keep improving and developing the technology. As a result, today we are selling more Ambilight TV sets than ever before, with Ambilight starting at our 6000 series. Last, but not least, our AmbiLux TV has been receiving rave reviews from both media and consumers since we launched it last year here at IFA. What sets TP Vision apart in the market as a company (your key differentiators)? As TP Vision – and as the guardian of the Philips TV brand – this is our fourth IFA, and we have already played our part in continuing the brand tradition in ground breaking and exciting innovations. In fact, we have continued to honour the Philips TV by offering the best picture quality and sound in each segment of our range, our exclusive Ambilight technology and also include an outstanding European inspired craftsmanship and design. How important is IFA as a “global stage” for TP Vision and why? IFA is very important time of the year. We are showcasing our complete TV range to consumers but also to customers, partners and media from around the world. For five days, the whole industry is reunited. This opens doors to new business opportunities and constructive product discussions, giving everyone a chance to experience our products. It is also very important to get a glimpse of the present as well as future trends of the consumer electronics business. Which regions are demonstrating the highest growth and which are the most promising for the future? In Europe we had events that positively impacted the markets such as digital switchover in France, the UEFA European Championships, also in France, and, of course, the Rio Olympics. On the other hand, situations such as Brexit and the political uncertainty in some countries have somehow dampened consumer confidence. With such a diverse environment in Europe, it is difficult to make predictions. What is your “vision” for the TV industry going forward? What will be important? The TV industry is constantly evolving, it feels like it changes every day, indeed it is a fascinating business to be in. With different technologies developing at a very fast pace, it is vital to keep evolving, adapting and advancing. We must combine all those technologies in a seamless way, and make exciting products, easy to experience and desirable to own. TV is becoming the central hub of connected homes but also, the favourite screen for gamers, an entertainment hub, an object of desire in the middle of the modern living room…And it will keep evolving as technology and consumer habits change. As long as the industry continues to keep up, possibilities are endless www.ifa-international.org IFA International • Monday 5 th September 2016 17
