Flat Panel Kings Crowned

Who's the king of the hill in flat-panel TV, according to the NPD Group, for the first quarter of 2009? In overall sales, Samsung. In LCD, Vizio. And in plasma, Panasonic.

While Samsung's LCD and plasma ranks are only second place, the company has 18.2 percent of the market for flat panels overall, putting it on top. But that's down more than two points from the previous year. Quarter-to-quarter shipments are down 30 percent, while year-to-year growth is up 56 percent.

In LCD, Vizio has taken over from Samsung in first place, with an 18.9 percent share, and is the only LCD brand among the top five to ship more sets in the last quarter. The runners up are Sony, Funai, and Sharp. Total LCD shipments are down 18 percent Q/Q, but up 23 percent Y/Y.

In plasma, Panasonic remains the top brand, at 38.7 percent, followed by Samsung, LG, Vizio, and Sanyo. Total plasma shipments are down 50 percent Q/Q and down five percent Y/Y.

See NPD Group's DisplaySearch.

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