Posted Wed Jul 22, 2009 at 11:00 AM PDT by Mike Attebery
Blu-ray sales continue to grow despite down economy.
The Consumer Electronics Association released a midyear forecast, stating that consumer electronics revenues will decline for the first time since 2001. According to the report, CE revenues will drop 7.7 percent, down to about $165 billion by the end of 2009, but resurgence is expected in 2010.
The good news, according to the report, is that while sales are down, they’re not as far down as other industries. Compared to auto sales and home sales, says the CEA, consumer electronics are doing amazingly well.
The report also mentions that while revenue is down, sales are actually up in many cases. LCD sales jumped 24 percent, but due to lower prices and an increased demand for midsized displays, they’ll be coming up shorter than last year financially.
Blu-ray players of course, remain an incredible growth market, which the CEA says will end at over double last year’s sales and revenue. Six million players will be shipped by the year’s end, with revenues jumping to over a billion dollars.
Explaining the trend of consumer electronics success was CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro. “American consumers continue to purchase CE products despite cutting back in many areas, showing that consumer electronics are vital to everyday life in this country.”
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