TUESDAY, MARCH 2,1965. The Television Boom

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30688, 2 March 1965, Page 12

TUESDAY, MARCH 2,1965. The Television Boom

This calendar year, according to the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, will be the peak year for sales of television sets in New Zealand. The institute’s projections of demand for television sets (reported elsewhere in this issue) place the 1965 sales at 172,000 sets, compared with 144,000 last year. After this year, however, the decline in sales will be rapid: to 85,000 sets next year, and a mere 7000 sets by 1970. As in any exercise of this kind, the projections must be taken as approximate and due allowance made for possible changes in markets —such as a recession in the economy—or in technology—such as the introduction of coloured television. The general trend, however, is clear and accords with overseas experience.

Most manufacturers and retailers of television sets in New Zealand are well aware that the “ Television “boom” is a short-lived affair; some will even be agreeably surprised at the institute’s forecast of a 20 per cent increase in sales this year. The projected 50 per cent fall in sales next year will catch some traders unprepared. The institute foresees intensified competition among manufacturers and distributors, resulting in a lowering of retail prices, increased trade-in values, style obsolescence, “ and (perhaps) “easier credit facilities”. Publication of the institute’s prediction of lower prices next year might cause intending purchasers to defer their outlay on a set; if enough did so the number of sets sold would fall short of the projected level, or the projected sales level would be reached only if the price cuts expected in 1966 were applied in 1965. In either event, the forecast would have ensured its own falsification.

While the boom lasts, manufacturers and retailers will see no reason to reduce their profit margins or to strive after greater efficiency. Having had fair warning that prices are likely to fall next year, this year’s purchasers have no cause to complain about the high prices of television sets —or the profits earned by manufacturers and retailers.

Interest in the manufacture and sale of television equipment is by no means confined to the electrical industry. The television boom has had repercussions on the sales of most other commodities, on the entertainment industry, and even on the way of life in New Zealand. Educators and sociologists should take note of the forecast for 1970. By then, the institute estimates, 88 per cent of urban households will have a television set. Statistically speaking, the New Zealand population will be a “ saturated “market”. What are we to be “saturated” with? Will the New Zealand television viewer prove to be more discriminating than the New Zealand television purchaser?