A clash of strategies in colour TVs

As the colour television market becomes more competitive, strategies are going to be constantly under the microscope. Market feedback will be used to fine-tune strategies, and make mid-stream changes.

That's not easy. There is no agreement on market figures. As the market share gap between colour TV brands narrows, the cacophony about market research data becomes shriller. One group, Videocon, has taken ORG, a market research agency, to court. It's unlikely there will be an early resolution of this dispute.

But these are skirmishes in a bigger war. The main battle rages on in the area of positioning of products.

K.S. Raman, president of the Consumer Electronics and Television Manufacturers Association, or Cetma, believes that it is important for TV makers to straddle the market with products for its various segments. At the same time, he says, market perceptions of quality will be critical. Click here for more.

The main players are launching a slew of products positioned in different segments of the colour TV market. How such positioning matches broad strategic stances is an interesting study for any student or practitioner of management.

Let's take Onida and Videocon, the two companies fighting for the number two position. They have totally different strategies, and entirely different thinking behind the decibel level in the marketplace. While Onida has harnessed a single brand with sub-brands to do all its work, all riding on superior technology, the Videocon group uses a multi-pronged, multi-brand strategy.