Cee Vision introduces Chi Mei TFT LCD technology in India

Rahul Neel Mani / New Delhi

TFT LCD monitors and panels seem to be the order of the day. Recently there was a new name added to the list of companies offering TFT LCD products in India. Chemoplast India recently introduced a range of such products manufactured by Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corporation (CMO) of Taiwan, one of the largest producers of TFT LCD panels in the world.

Cee Vision Technologies, a Chemoplast India subsidiary, will market Chi Mei products in India. Cee Vision is first introducing CMV 15-inch and 17-inch TFT LCD monitors with a digital input interface.

Cee Vision Technologies has also opened an exclusive brand shop and retail centre to showcase CMO LCD TFT products in Delhi. According to K P S Narayanan, managing director, Chemoplast India, soon there will be a Cee Vision Techno Zone brand shop in all the major metro cities in India. “We will retail these products through our channel partners whereas corporate selling will happen directly,” said Narayanan.

According to Narayanan the current market for TFT LCD monitors in India is as low as 35,000-40,000 units per annum. Next year it will grow at a meagre rate of 8-10 percent. And the migration from existing PC monitors is just 2-3 percent. “Come 2005 and duties on the imported TFT LCD panels will drastically come down to 0-5 percent. And that's when the market is expected to grow and take a definite shape. We are just waiting for that opportune moment to come so that we can grab market share,” said Narayanan.

About pricing of the products, Narayanan said that they would be as competitive as other brands selling such products. The company has planned to appoint a force of nearly 15 sales personnel and four engineers initially to promote and push CMO products. It is slated to achieve a turnover of approximately Rs 8-10 crore by the end of fiscal 2003-04. The company also expects to sell 4,000–5,000 units in the year 2004, which is estimated to rise by at least three times a year later. After the successful launch of TFT LCD monitors, the company in future also plans to launch other products from the CMO family, such
as LCD TVs and mobile phones. “We will also study the market potential of home entertainment and the home products segment and if it is sustainable, we will launch the Chi Mei range of products in India for that segment,” said Narayanan.