14 DAY TRIAL // After launching its highly regarded Bravia series of HD compliant LCD TVs, camcorders and monitors, it looks like Sony is stepping out of the dedicated segment. The first retail markets to go without Sony's LCDs will be the most profitable of all - North America and Japan, according to DigiTimes.
According to several undisclosed sources within the industry, the company's LCD business is to go down the drain starting October, when U.S.'s and Japan's retail markets will be deleted from the shipping list. Furthermore, the sources said that the maker will completely seize to produce LCDs starting the first months of 2007.
"While Sony does not comment on rumors, quitting LCD monitor business may be inline with the company's strategy to withdraw from highly-competitive businesses the company does not have obvious success in. For example, Sony has exited plasma panel television and is scrapping its Qualia lineup of luxury consumer electronics, as neither of the businesses brought the company profits and market shares it wanted," comments X-bit Labs.
And, as a new CEO, Howard Stringer, is to take over the leadership position within the company, the global strategy may be dramatically changed in a few months.
An up to date report issued by DisplaySearc - a market tracking agency - showed that even if Sony is the leader in multiple segments, the LCD market is not one of them, as the company has been recently ranked tenth in the worldwide top for the 2005 shipments, when the manufacturer shipped approximately 3.07 million LCDs. Furthermore, the largest retail market based in North America makes up to 40% of its total sales, as no less than 347 thousand units were sold only on the continent.