Sanyo Taiwan, UMO to jointly debut 53-inch LCOS TV model

Taipei, Dec. 10, 2003 (CENS)--Sanyo Electric (Taiwan) Co. wil soon debut a 53-inch rear-projection LCOS (liquid crystal on silicon) digital TV model jointly developed with local partner United Microdisplay Optronics Corp. (UMO) to tap the international large-size TV market.

The new LCOS TV model is scheduled to be unveiled on December 16 and will be priced at under NT$100,000 (US$2,933 at US$1: NT$34.1) per unit, the two companies said.

Currently, industry sources said, the retail price of a home-grown plasma display panel (PDP) TV model is set at NT$300,000 (US$8,798) and imported similar models at NT$350,000 to NT$400,000 (US$10,264 to US$11,730). The sources added that Sanyo Taiwan's new model would be very price-competitive.

Top executives of Sanyo Taiwan and UMO would participate in the new product presentation ceremony in Taiwan, including Sanyo Taiwan chairman Lee Wen-feng and UMO chairman John Hsuan.

Sanyo Taiwan said that its new-generation LCOS TV model adopts the second-generation LCOS chipsets developed by UMO, a subsidiary of leading global IC foundry United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC), and will have a 4:3 screen and a HDTV-grade 1080i resolution. Sanyo Taiwan added that the new LCOS TV model would also target some major export markets such as the United States, mainland China and the Middle East.

Sanyo Taiwan expects that continuous drop in the prices of large-sized digital TV sets will greatly stimulate the demand and expand the market at a high speed. Sanyo Taiwan has been cooperating with UMO for many years and the two parties expect to utilize the new LCOS TV model to tap the rapidly expanding digital TV market.

Sanyo Taiwan said that it has tested the LCOS TV model with the digital TV programs broadcast in some big Japanese cities and the 53-inch model performed quite well by fully rendering HDTV-grade picture quality and effects.

In Taiwan, Kolin Co. has launched a 50-inch LCOS rear-projection TV model priced at about NT$149,000 (US$4,370). The company claimed that the model was targeted at the high-end market with 16:9 screen and state-of-the-art appearance designs.

Kolin said that the vivid development of the LCOS TV industry in Taiwan can help accelerate the integration of the up- and down-stream industries on the island. The firm welcomes newcomers to jointly expand the global demand for such product. In addition to UMO, Himax Technologies, Inc. (formerly HiMAX Optoelectronics Corp.) has also been devoted to the development and manufacturing of LCOS technology chips in Taiwan.

Industry sources said that 50- to 70-inch LCOS rear-projection models are one of the mainstream products in the large-sized digital TV market and the size of such models could be extended to about 100 inches. With the same projection principle, the sources explained, the enlarged LCOS TV models would not involve much additional production cost.

Sanyo Taiwan said that its parent Sanyo Japan hasn't yet developed LCOS TV products and is strongly willing to allow the new LCOS TV model to be sold through its established international sales channels.