Vizio - the new threat of

Just a year ago, few people heard of the name, but now, it is one of the five largest liquid crystal TV companies in North America, shoulder to shoulder with familiar names like Sony and Samsung.

According to research firm iSuppli, Vizio sold 606,402 TVs in the second quarter of 2007, up 76% from the previous three months. This output puts them at number one in the LCD market in terms of sales, while market share also accounts for 14.5% and ranks fifth.

Samsung's "former champion" was lowered to No. 2 with 467,210 TVs consumed. The most failed company was Sony when the third row dropped to sixth due to selling only 253,377 products. " We have become new competitors for these two corporations, " said William Wang, CEO of Vizio.

Vizio's spectacular rise is partly due to its product distribution strategy. At the beginning of the second quarter, they expanded their retail outlets list from Wal-Mart, Sears, Kmart to Circuit City.

In addition, the quality of Vizio's liquid crystal display is similar to Sony's and Samsung's while the resale price is lower."For $ 1,000, customers can buy Sony 32-37 inch TVs or buy Vizio's 47-inch TVs. In general, consumers always consider the price when choosing products," iSuppli representative said.

Vizio L42HDTV.Photo: Ultimateavmag .

Most of Vizio's TVs are consumed by word of mouth because they do not advertise much in the media. " Our goal is to become a big brand in the consumer electronics market, not only in the TV industry ," Wang said.

Vizio's plan is to produce medium and high-end TVs at the cheapest price. Acer has also adopted a similar policy to rise to a high position in the computer market. Besides, Vizio provides free customer support at home during the warranty period and the policy of "screen zero pixel error" indefinitely.

Moreover, understanding that customers often have a tendency to buy electronics at large supermarkets, Vizio focuses on distributing low-priced products in places where users often appear.

Started as a consulting firm in 2003, this California-based manufacturer worked with several LCD partners in Taiwan and decided to build its own brand. Vizio currently has 85 employees, most of whom work in the customer care department and the production stage is delivered to third parties.

" We know that we cannot maintain this advantage because other companies like Samsung, Sony and Sharp are also adjusting prices as well as planning to compete with the policies that Vizio is applying very effectively ", Wang talked about their challenge in the future.