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Samsung eyes double digit growth from TVs in festive season

New Delhi, Sep 25

With quality of content and higher Internet speed driving the surge in sales of smart televisions in India, Samsung is targeting double digit growth in its revenue from TV sales during the festive season, according to a top company executive.

The South Korean electronics major is particularly bullish on the sales of its TVs in the 55-inch and above segment, eying three times growth in this category due to the continuing trend of "upsizing" among Indian consumers.

Samsung said it has about 49 per cent market share in the 55-inch QLED segment, achieving an eight per cent gain in market share during the January-July period, on the back of the new QLED models it launched this year.

"Smart TV growth has been significant in India and this growth I will attribute to very good content and Internet speed going up," Raju Pullan, Senior Vice President, Consumer Electronics Business, Samsung India, told te media in an interview.

"Share of smart TV category in the overall TV market in the country has gone up to 25 per cent till July this year. We have grown by over 40 per cent," Pullan added.

Samsung said it has been the No.1 player in the Indian TV market for the past 13 years. But the company is now facing competition from Chinese players like Xiaomi and Lenovo-owned Motorola. Moreover, OnePlus is also eying a pie of the Indian TV market with the launch of its first TV on September 26.

"In India, there is place for everybody," Pullan said, in response to a question on the competition it faces from the Chinese players.

To drive the sales of its TVs during the festive season, Samsung earlier this month announced 25 per cent instant discount on products such as QLED TVs and 4K UHD TVs. Consumers will also be able to avail up to 15 per cent additional cashback with Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, RBL Bank and ICICI Bank debit and credit cards.

During the offer period, valid till October 30, consumers purchasing select models of Samsung QLED TVs will get assured gifts such as Galaxy S10 smartphone worth Rs 61,900 and Galaxy A50 worth Rs 21,490.

"We are seeing very strong growth in the rural market as well. Our strategy during this festival season is to disrupt the QLED market segment," Pullan told the media.

With the purchase of select 4K UHD TVs, consumers will get complimentary gifts such as Galaxy M30 worth Rs 17,990 and Google Home Mini worth Rs 4,999, the company said.

"We are making very strong retail investments so that we are able to upsize the Indian consumers, especially in the 55-inch and above segment," Pullan said.

"We have increased retail investment by about 25 per cent and increased digital marketing investment by about 42 per cent over last year," he added.

"Our current market share in the overall Indian TV market is 30.5 per cent and our target is to capture 34 per cent share by the end of this year. In the QLED segment, our target is to capture 60 per cent market share this year," Pullan said.