By Matthew Henry
SYDNEY: The average monthly sales volume of digital TV receivers reached a new high in the July to September quarter this year, growing to 84,400 units per month – up from the previous high point of 76,600 units in the preceding quarter.
In its third quarterly report for 2006, Digital Broadcasting Australia (DBA) highlighted significant sales growth of digital TV receivers including digital set top boxes, digital integrated TVs and personal video recorders with built-in digital TV tuners through retailers and installers.
According to GfK figures quoted in the report, sales increased around 54 per cent compared with the same three-month period in 2005 when the average monthly sales volume was 54,800 units.
Total cumulative sales of digital TV receivers reached 1,998,000 units at the end of September, and assuming the sales trend has continued Australia should by now have passed the two million digital receiver sales mark.
With a total of 253,000 digital TV receivers sold in the quarter, the DBA estimates the overall penetration of digital TV has risen to around 23 per cent of Australian homes, or 1.8 million of the 7.6 million Australian households.
Demand for digital integrated TVs – such as plasma and LCD televisions with built-in digital tuners – continued its significant growth for the second quarter in a row, with sales jumping from 53,000 units in the April to June quarter to 92,000 between July and September.