Reuters reports that Sony and Panasonic have no plans to abandon their TV businesses, despite reporting mounting losses in recent years. According to Reuters, both companies believe that retreating from the TV market would close off more promising opportunities.
With a focus on the premium sector of the TV market, both Sony and Panasonic are able to maintain their relevance as quality brands and stay at the forefront when consumers are looking to buy other electronic products. Sony, in particular, sees a strong correlation between sales trends for its TVs and audio systems.
Ichiro Takagi, head of Sony’s home entertainment and sound business, told Reuters, “TVs are the soul of Sony and we don’t want to be without them”. He added that, as a result of Sony’s recent radical restructuring of its business, the company’s TV unit managed to record a small operating profit in the last financial year, making an exit now less likely.
Panasonic has not witnessed such an improvement and continues to lose sales to cheaper Asian manufacturers. However, the head of Panasonic’s TV business, Masahiro Shinada, believes that maintaining a presence in the TV sector makes it easier for the company to sell more white goods, as TVs lift the company’s image and many retailers prefer to deal with manufacturers of high-volume products such as TVs.
