It is widely acknowledged that intelligence has become a new direction for the development of various industries, with the home appliance industry having already set off an intelligent wave early on, leading to an increasing number of smart home appliance products emerging. In the living room scenario, the television is undoubtedly the central piece among many home appliances, and with the boost of the intelligent wave, this product has also embarked on an intelligent innovation, with numerous TV manufacturers launching their own smart TV products.
Compared to traditional TVs, the functionality of smart TVs has greatly increased. In addition to the regular function of watching TV, they also have various features such as gaming and online shopping. Moreover, users can download and install applications from the app store to meet their diverse needs. Under the combined influence of many factors, smart TVs have gradually entered thousands of households.
However, despite the continuous upgrade of TVs towards intelligence and the increasing power of smart TV functions, the TV industry has fallen into a predicament, gradually becoming less sellable. According to data from Luotu Technology, in 2023, the shipment volume of brand complete machines in the Chinese TV market was 36.56 million units, a decrease of 8.4% compared to 2022. The entire TV industry is like this, and the smart TV sector can be imagined. In addition, according to the online monitoring data of Luotu Technology (RUNTO), in the third quarter of 2023, the online monitoring market sales volume of smart TVs in China was 4.326 million units, a year-on-year decrease of 22.1%. Behind the slowdown in the growth of smart TVs, there are many reasons.
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Firstly, the development of smartphones has diverted users' attention, and the attention to smart TVs has decreased. With the development of technology, intelligent hardware products represented by smartphones continue to evolve and become more powerful. The emergence of long video platforms and short video platforms allows users to watch dramas and movies without turning on the TV, reducing the attractiveness of smart TVs to users. According to the "2024 China Smart TV Interaction New Trend Report" released by the Prospective Industry Research Institute, since 2016, the TV startup rate in our country has plummeted from 70% to less than 30% in 2022.
Secondly, smart TVs are complex to operate, leading to a poor consumer experience. The functions of smart TVs have become more and more abundant, and to achieve interaction, a smart TV will at least be equipped with 2-3 remote controls, making the difficulty of operation increase sharply. Coupled with the fact that the main group of people watching TV now are the elderly, the complex operation of switching multiple remote controls will undoubtedly increase the difficulty of use for the elderly and reduce their experience. According to the "2022 China Aging-Friendly TV Research Report," 49.6% of the elderly are troubled by "not being able to directly watch the TV program they want to watch after turning on the TV"; 28% because "there are many devices (set-top boxes, TVs) and they don't know how to switch"; another 20.9% said "the operation is complex, and they don't know how to find the content they want to watch."
Thirdly, there are many advertisements on smart TVs, which affect users' willingness to turn on the TV. As everyone knows, most smart TVs currently have boot advertisements, and some advertisements cannot be closed and can only wait for the advertisement time to pass. These frequent advertisements will inevitably affect the consumer's experience. In addition, the impact of other smart devices such as smart projectors, as well as the complexity of smart TV operations and high app fees, have also affected consumers' attitudes towards smart TVs. Over time, consumers gradually become less fond of watching TV.
At present, the slowdown in the growth of the TV industry and the decline in TV startup rates have become a reality, and smart TVs are also frequently "complained" by consumers, making the market environment extremely severe. However, it is worth mentioning that in the face of many challenges, TV manufacturers represented by Hisense, TCL, and Xiaomi have not turned a blind eye, but have actively adapted to development trends and combined consumer needs to continuously innovate smart TV products, thereby stimulating consumer enthusiasm.1. Parameter Competition
Despite televisions holding a significant position among various household appliances, the market is becoming saturated due to factors such as the shift in consumer focus and the extension of the replacement cycle for TVs, gradually bidding farewell to the era of high growth. In this television sector that has entered the stage of stock competition, the competition has become increasingly fierce. Consequently, major TV manufacturers are exerting their utmost efforts to continuously refine their products. It is well-known that parameters are an important reference standard for consumers when selecting smart TV products, which is why TV manufacturers have started a "parameter war."
For instance, in terms of size, smart TVs are becoming larger. Hisense's Hisense TV E5N Pro series offers four versions with 65-inch, 75-inch, 85-inch, and 100-inch screens; TCL's Q10K Mini-LED TV also covers four sizes: 65, 75, 85, and 98 inches; recently, Xiaomi also introduced the "Redmi MAX 100" with a 100-inch giant screen design. Behind the continuous launch of large-sized smart TVs by manufacturers lies the intention to provide consumers with an immersive "large screen" viewing experience.
Whether it is traditional or smart TVs, consumers should be most concerned about picture quality, after all, the primary function of a TV is to watch content, and picture quality is naturally a key focus for TV manufacturers. Specifically, Hisense's "Hisense TV E5N Pro" is not only equipped with ULED Mini LED but also incorporates Hisense's self-developed Xinxin® AI picture chip; TCL's "Q10K Pro" Mini LED TV has up to 5184 backlight partitions, enabling more precise color display; Xiaomi's "Redmi MAX 100-inch TV" adopts advanced 4K resolution technology and is equipped with a full HD HDR display. It is evident that smart TV manufacturers are continuously focusing on picture quality to allow consumers to enjoy a more outstanding visual experience.
2. Strengthening Technology
As is known, the TV industry has gone through a long period of development, and many TV manufacturers have emerged in the industry, expanding the choices available to consumers. In recent years, smart TVs have become a new growth point in the entire TV industry, with major TV manufacturers increasing their investments. However, smart TVs have inevitably fallen into the dilemma of product homogenization. To gain more user recognition and achieve continuous growth in performance, TV manufacturers are constantly enhancing their technological capabilities and innovating products to create differentiation.
For example, Hisense is the only TV manufacturer in the industry that develops its own chips, having launched five generations of picture chips since entering the chip field. With the support of Hisense's self-developed Xinxin® AI picture chip Pro, Hisense smart TVs can quickly achieve picture tuning and optimization by analyzing elements such as light, source material, and color. TCL has exclusively developed the Full-Field Halo Control Technology, which effectively solves the halo problem that damages the purity of the TV picture, further enhancing the picture quality and image expressiveness of the TV.
Similarly, Xiaomi has developed the "Xiaomi Master Picture Engine," which can analyze and process multiple dimensions such as color, color accuracy, contrast, and clarity. Through its self-developed color gamut expansion technology, dynamic contrast enhancement technology, and screen driving technology, it unleashes the potential of Mini LED picture quality, ultimately presenting a more vivid and high-quality image.
3. Going Global
Due to the high saturation of the Chinese TV market, with overall demand slowing down compared to the past, coupled with fierce industry competition, smart TV manufacturers need to find new growth paths. Against this backdrop, many smart TV manufacturers have turned their attention to overseas markets, accelerating their expansion in these markets, hoping to achieve new growth in the global arena.Specifically, as early as 2006, Hisense established an international strategy of "focusing on overseas markets," marking the beginning of its overseas expansion. After more than a decade of development, Hisense has become a globally recognized home appliance brand. According to the "Global TV Brand Shipment Monthly Data Report" released by Ovum, in 2023, Hisense's TV shipments reached 25.852 million units, securing the second place globally with a shipment share of 13.23%.
TCL is one of the earliest Chinese enterprises to venture overseas. Throughout its journey, TCL has continuously enriched its innovative product lines and adopted precise marketing strategies to adapt to overseas markets and meet the needs of foreign consumers. As a result, TCL's smart TV products have achieved remarkable success in several overseas countries. The latest report from GfK and Circana shows that in 2023, TCL's TV shipment market share ranks in the top five in nearly 30 countries overseas.
As a significant player in the smart TV sector, Xiaomi naturally did not overlook the overseas market and has also accelerated the advancement of its international strategy. It is understood that at the beginning of 2018, Xiaomi TV first entered the overseas market in India, and in September of the same year, the Xiaomi TV 4A 32-inch officially landed in Indonesia; in June 2019, Xiaomi TV officially entered the Russian market. Just recently, Xiaomi also officially launched the latest version of its smart TV, the A Pro, targeting the European market. It is evident that the overseas market has long become a new battlefield for smart home appliance manufacturers.
In the future, will growth come from AI?
In fact, following the breakout success of AI large models, AI technology has also become a key focus area for home appliance manufacturers, with many TV manufacturers having announced their progress in the field of AI. For instance, Changhong released the world's first AI platform for smart home appliances based on large models, Changhong Yunfan; Hisense introduced its self-developed Xinghai large model. In addition, home appliance giants such as Midea and Haier, as well as TCL, are also actively deploying in the AI field. This shows that AI technology has become a common choice for TV giants.
Firstly, the application of AI technology can help smart TV manufacturers create differentiated competitive advantages. As mentioned earlier, homogenization is also a significant challenge in the smart TV field, where manufacturers with differentiated features and strong innovation capabilities often stand out. Currently, the implementation of AI large models is accelerating, and smart TV products, with their deep development in AI and intelligent voice interaction, have become one of the best carriers for the implementation of AI large models. As the integration of AI and smart TVs deepens, manufacturers may also use this opportunity to create a unique competitive edge different from other players in the same race.
Secondly, AI technology can make smart TVs "smarter," which helps improve consumer experience. Poor user experience is the most critical factor hindering smart TVs from gaining consumer recognition. However, times have changed, and current AI technology has made new breakthroughs. The integration of AI and smart home appliances is expected to further promote the upgrade of smart TVs, making them "smarter," easier to operate, and optimizing the consumer viewing experience, ultimately driving the increase in smart TV product sales.
At present, the smart TV industry is moving towards the direction of AI, and the application of AI technology is also expected to empower smart TVs, bringing new possibilities. Various players in the smart TV field are actively participating to embrace the new opportunities brought by the AI wave. Despite the challenges faced by the smart TV industry, it is believed that with continuous efforts by smart TV manufacturers in product development, user experience, and AI, smart TVs will eventually regain consumer recognition.