The SCREENS.tv Blog
NEC Australia - pulling out of entry-level LCDs? Bad move guys... (8)
Interesting to see that NEC Australia has pulled out of the entry-level LCD monitor marketplace in order to concentrate on its `premium' products such as medical monitors, home entertainment systems and - of course - digital signage.
The move will cut NEC's distribution channels significantly in Australia and will almost certainly mean some high street retailers no longer stocking the company's LCD products.
The official line is that NEC Oz will concentrate on MultiSync LCD displays, as well as MultiSync DLP and LCD projectors, PlasmaSync displays and digital signage systems.
Daniel Hancox, the firm's national sales manager, has pulled no punches - he says that it's no secret that no-one is making any money from selling entry-level LCD monitors.
Am I alone in thinking this is a seriously retrograde move by NEC?
Surely the company can continue to offer entry-level product to the sales channel in Australia on a cost-plus-30-percent basis?
This means that, even if the product appears a little over-priced alongside the competition, at least the product is out there in the marketplace, keeping the NEC flag flying.
If NEC disappears from the budget LCD sales shelves, then it will disappear from consumers' minds. And, ergo, from business buyers' minds also.
So when an NEC digital signage solution is offered by a systems integrator to a company customer, they may not be aware that the company is in the LCD space.
Panasonic or Sony, on the other hand, are always going to be well known in the LCD monitor space.
I think NEC are definitely missing a trick here. I remember my time on a PC trade magazine in the early 1990s when IBM pulled out of the entry-level PC market.
The company lost its high profile in the desktop space and ended up being classed as a laptop maker, a tag it struggles to leave behind even today.
NEC may make more profit in the shorter term, but I'll wager it will soon regret its decision in Australia...
Share this article with others
Post to del.icio.us
Post your Comment
Skip to comments
User reviews and comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site.
Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. We will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site.