TechPulse 360

There will be more consumer electronic products sold in 2009 despite worsening economy

Despite the recession and lower overall consumer spending, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) predicts consumers will still buy electronic goods in drove in 2009.

“Consumer electronics is not a luxury, it’s a necessity,” admonished Steve Koenig, the director of industry analysis at CEA, the owner of the CES show.

Digital TVs, cell phones, PCs and video games are the 4 bellwether categories that are really the driving forces of the CE industry accounting for about 70% of the entire CE market or roughly $20-$25 billion in wholesale revenues.

In 2008, LCD TVs drove the digital TV segment with 41% of the sales versus 12% for plasma TVs.

Smartphones like the iPhone, some Windows Mobile phones and Blackberries accounted for half of the $23 billion in sales last year.

In the PC market, it’s a notebook story, comprising 63% of that industry volume. Notebooks now largely surpass the number of desktops sold in 2008.

Finally, in gaming, it’s really the video games rather than the pricey game consoles themselves that are driving that market. The games are accounting for the biggest chunk of this market, almost $13 billion of the overall $20 billion in the past year.

For 2009, CEA predicts more of the same, albeit at a more slower rate. Consumers are just spending more of their discretionary money in electronics than ever before!