The halcyon days of Japan's TV makers are long over. Now the business has become a drag on the earnings of the nation's electronics giants.
TV demand shrank fast after consumers rushed out to buy digital TVs before broadcasts turned digital last year, making older analog models unusable without satellite or cable TV services.
"The prices of flat-screen TVs are falling rapidly," an official with a major home electronics store in Tokyo said. "Customers have become choosy because they are comparison shopping."
Hitachi Ltd., which has made TVs since 1956, said this month that it will cease production and outsource the work to foreign manufacturers instead. (Japan Times)
↧