Sony India eyeing World Cup to drive market share in flat panel TV segment

Aiming to leverage the stronghold cricket has on Indians, electronics major Sony today said it will use the upcoming World Cup to drive the sales of its Bravia range of full HD televisions in India.

It has brought on board Indian cricket captain M S Dhoni as the brand ambassador for the Bravia and has earmarked Rs100 crore towards its advertising and marketing activities, it's highest ever brand spending in the consumer electronics space in the country.

The company said it is targeting a 40 per cent market share in the flat panel TV segment during the world cup season, from its current 35 per cent, and has set itself a target to sell 2.5 lakh units of Bravia HD TV during this period.

The ICC Cricket World Cup is being telecast in HD for the first time by sports broadcasters ESPN Star Sports and Sony India is the on-air broadcast sponsor for the same.

On using cricket as a platform to expand sales, Masaru Tamagawa, managing director, Sony India, said, ''Sony has chosen cricket to promote high definition as it is the most popular sport in India and makes for a perfect platform to bring HD closer to our consumers.''

Tamagawa added that Sony will also be investing in the upcoming IPL season.
 
The company will be using various media formats including TVC, print, web, outdoor and below-the line activities to drive the visibility of its Bravia series, which includes 20 full HD models consisting of full HD 3D, full HD LED and full HD LCD TV.