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J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Consumer Must Look Beyond Technology When Purchasing High-End Televisions; Sony, Hitachi, Samsung and Mitsubishi Top Segment Satisfaction Rankings (26/11/2004)

While consumers often don't perceive significant technology differences between high-end television systems such as rear projection (LCD, DLP, LCoS) and plasma, they do recognize quality differences among brands, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2004 Television Satisfaction Study(SM) released today.

"There are wide quality variations among television brands deploying the same technology," said George Owens, director of emerging industries at J.D. Power and Associates. "Once a customer chooses a type of television, they still must do their research to find out which brands best deliver that technology."

The inaugural study, based on responses from 5,343 consumers who spent $1,000 or more on a television purchased between April 2003 and October 2004, measures customer satisfaction across three pricing segments: $1,000-$2,499; $2,500-$3,499 and $3,500 or more. Overall customer satisfaction is based on performance in five factors. In order of importance, they are: picture quality, cost, ease of use, fit/appearance and sound quality.

The study finds that higher-end television buyers will easily pay a premium for picture quality, quality of workmanship, screen size and ease of integration with other electronic components.

Almost all high-end television buyers conduct research prior to their purchase, with more than one-half (56%) using an Internet site to find information to assist in their purchase decision. While more than one-third (38%) of buyers visit an independent consumer Web site as their primary source for information, nearly as many (32%) visit television manufacturer sites. Consumers also rely heavily on salespeople for guidance, advice and information. Buyers in the highest price segment do the most research, while buyers in the lowest price segment are more influenced by point-of-sale information and marketing.

Interestingly, buyers of more expensive televisions watch less TV than those who purchase one that is less expensive. The study finds that the largest group (35%) among buyers of televisions in the $1,000-$2,499 price segment watch between 40 to 150 hours of TV a week. By comparison, the largest group (40%) among buyers in the $3,500 or more segment watch just one to 20 hours of TV per week.

Sony ranks highest in customer satisfaction in the $1,000-$2,499 price segment. Sony leads the segment in picture quality, ease of use and sound quality. Hitachi, Philips and Toshiba follow Sony in the rankings, respectively.

Hitachi ranks highest in the $2,500-$3,499 segment, receiving particularly high ratings in picture quality, cost, ease of use and sound quality. Sony, which also receives high customer ratings for picture quality, is the only other brand to perform above the segment average.

Samsung and Mitsubishi tie to rank highest in the $3,500 or more segment. Samsung leads the segment in picture quality, while Mitsubishi leads in cost. Sony also performs above the segment average.

www.jdpower.com