The global television market shrank last year for the second year in a row after total shipments declined by 6 percent from already soft 2012 levels, accompanied this time by a rare deceleration in the liquid-crystal display (LCD) TV space in China, Asia-Pacific and Eastern Europe, according to a new report from IHS Technology.

Shipments worldwide of televisions in 2013 amounted to 225.1 million units, down sharply from 238.3 million in 2012. It was the second straight year of contraction after a 7 percent loss in 2012, contrasting with the market’s big 11 percent surge in 2010 and a more modest 1 percent uptick in 2011, as shown in the attached figure.

“The global TV market continues to be in transition following a golden period of tremendous growth from 2009 to 2011,” said Jusy Hong, principal analyst for consumer devices at IHS. “Television shipments were down again in 2013 just like in 2012, but an unusual development was the slow market last year in China, Asia-Pacific and Eastern Europe—until recently among the brighter spots for the industry.”

Adding to the market’s woes, Hong added, cash-strapped consumers in North America and Western Europe showed little appetite to buy new TVs, especially as these territories are nearly saturated from flat-panel sets during the last major upgrade of the growth years.

Despite the sobering numbers for last year, worldwide TV shipments are projected to improve. The developed markets of North America, Western Europe and Japan will stabilize in the coming years, and no large yearly decreases like those of last year are forecast for the time being, Hong said. At the same time, significant growth can be expected from China, the rest of Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East-Africa markets.

Latin America, in particular, will enjoy a surge for many reasons, including projected economic growth, the FIFA World Cup soccer championship later this year, the analog-to-digital changeover in 2015, and the Summer Olympics in 2016.

Worldwide television shipment totals will also start climbing this year because of the new active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) sets entering the market, making their appearance at retail in perceptible volume for the first time. Featuring thinner profiles and higher contrast ratios than the current crop of LED-backlit LCD TVs, OLED TVs will see shipments grow from an initial low starting base to some 8.1 million units by 2018.

(Source: HIS Pressroom)