14 DAY TRIAL // It appears that Sony has very ambitious plans for its LCD TV business outlet, having decided to play hardball on the field of web-connected models, enough so that good things are coming in FY 2011.
Being one of those companies that deals in a whole bunch of different product types, Sony has to keep track of many different sets of customers.
Of course, if it didn't have the capability, the company would not have bothered, hence the decision to keep pushing in all fields capable of turning profits.
The LCD TV business is one of these areas, and it looks like a certain sort of display is poised to increase its market share by a great deal.
No too many years ago, TVs were nothing but a display that could be hooked up to an antenna, cable or a set-top box.
More recently, however, they began to incorporate an increasing number of extra features, particularly LAN or WiFi connectivity.
Basically, LCD TVs have gained the ability to surf the web much like a PC would meaning that streaming can be done online, from sites like Netflix or YouTube.
To this functionality is added USB connectivity, widgets and other things, usually optional, that can supplement the experience.
It is this particular sort of display that Sony wants to sell and expects to see selling especially well during the 2011 fiscal year (April 2011-March 2012).
With global LCD TV demand set to reach 220 million in 2011, 64 million (29%) will be web-connected models, or so say reports.
Sony itself hopes that its share of LCD TV with web connection will rise to 50% of its total. In other words, at least half of its shipped LCD TVs will have LAN, WiFi or anything capable of filling the role of connection to the web.