The worldwide front projector market grew by 16% in second-quarter 2011 on year, according to Pacific Media Associates (PMA).
PMA divides the front projector industry into three brightness ranges, each associated with its own set of buyer types and applications: New Era (under 500 lumens), Mainstream (500 to 4999 lumens), and High-End (5000 or more lumens).
The New Era range showed unprecedented year-on-year growth with a 195% uptick in unit sales. Part of this growth can be attributed to an increase in shipments of products with embedded pico projectors, such as camcorders, digital still cameras (DSCs), and mobile phones. The New Era projector category also gained ground due to strong initial shipments of Wide XGA personal projectors.
In the Mainstream range, unit sales dropped by 4% on year in second-quarter 2011, due to sluggish sales in corporate and home markets that have been affected by economic recession.
"The year-on-year slowdown in the mainstream market was seen mainly in developed markets, many of which saw buoyant sales during last year's second quarter because of the industry's post-recession inventory correction, sporting events like Euro Football, and strong education technology spending from the US stimulus," said Michael Abramson, VP of Projector Research at Pacific Media Associates.
"Despite the weak comparisons, ultra-short-throw projectors, including the emerging interactive models, continued to outperform the overall market, even in developed countries," he added.
Sales of high-end models continued to outperform the overall market as volume rose 26% on year in the second quarter. Among the high-end models, D-cinema is expected to keep its sales momentum through the rest of 2011 with its new financing and deployment agreements. The traditional high-end models of Wide XGA and Wide UXGA projectors for large venues also performed well with double-digit gains in second-quarter 2011.
Article translated by Joy Wan
