Sales In India have not matched our expectation

''Sales In India Have Not Matched Our Expectations''

Chosaku Toda, 59, the Director of Matsushita Electrical Industries, was in India recently. Matsushita Electrical, which markets the Panasonic brand of CTVs, is now preparing itself to launch a host of digital products including digital TVs and set-top boxes. In an exclusive interview with BT's Jaya Basu, he shares his thoughts on the Indian CTV market and vision for the future.

How do you view the Indian market?

India is quite mysterious to me. It is a big country. More important is the fact that in CTVs, it is the fourth-largest market, after the US, China, and Japan. But this ranking belies the fact that despite a population of one billion, the market for CTVs is only five million units per annum. So, there is ample scope for the market to expand, and impetus can be provided by the TV-manufacturers by giving consumers quality products at the right price.

What do you think are the major problems affecting the industry?

This is the era of globalisation, and reduction of barriers always helps the manufacturers. Low import duties will go a long way in helping us because we are still importing colour picture tubes and some other inputs. A low import duty structure would also enable us to pass on the benefit to the consumer in the form of lower prices. At the same time, we are trying our best to indigenise our products to a greater extent to penetrate the markets further.

What will be the focus of your company in the future?

In India, we will try to build on our technological excellence in digital technology. We will introduce new products which will link digital technology with our existing technology to create new ways of entertainment and lifestyle.

Do you also plan to introduce new products in the market?

We are witnessing a convergence of technologies on a large scale which, in turn, is giving birth to new products. Many of these products like digital televisions have already been introduced in different parts of the world and we are keen to bring these products to India as well. The digital wave is just about to take off worldwide. In India too, with the possibility of Doordarshan going in for digital broadcasting by September, 2000, we expect a market for our digital products. Incidentally, we were the first to introduce digital TVs and set-top boxes in the US in 1998. I hope these product will also find a place in Indian homes.

Why are you so upbeat about the Indian market?

India is of special importance because it has highly talented and skilled personnel, particularly in infotech. We can use such expertise. Moreover, we are also diversifying into new businesses such as broadband communications, software, documentation, education, healthcare, and energy, and India is a potential market for such products.

What kind of products are likely to be unveiled by Matsushita at the international level?

In the 21st Century, digital and networking technologies will evolve rapidly to achieve an intelligent information society where advanced communications through multiple networks, linking individuals and society, will better lifestyles. Matsushita, being in the forefront of technology, will seek to integrate its capabilities which range from digital TV systems to semiconductors. The company is already working on products such as Home Information Infrastructure, which links everything in a household with external social infrastructure and e-Commerce that accelerates borderless business transactions.

Panasonic is a prestigious and strong brandname worldwide but, in India, its share is still hovering around 3-4 per cent of the total market. Why?

I admit that sales in India have not matched the expectations of the parent company and, naturally, we would like to expand our marketshare in India. We are now looking at a marketshare of 5 per cent, and hope to sell 2.4 lakh CTVs this year. But you have to remember that we have just posted a maiden profit of Rs 27 lakh (in 1999-2000). We are also expanding our Tau range of flat TVs by introducing made-in-India models. I also expect new technologies--liquid crystal display devices in the smaller-screen size segment and plasma devices in the larger category--to take over existing technologies soon. However, we are not into the numbers game, we are targeting discerning customers and want to build up the infrastructure to change our product mix according to the prevailing business environment.

Issue Contents Write to us Subscriptions Syndication