2 out of 5 Singaporeans happy to junk their TV’s

But a good 70% say they are willing to spend for branded TV, according to a survey by GfK.

The constant evolution of better and more sophisticated gadgets in today’s technologically-advanced age has made consumers in Singapore more tech-savvy and demanding, as evidenced by their willingness to spend more on innovative new products. A recent study conducted by leading market research company, GfK Singapore, revealed that more than half of Singapore’s TV buying population is willing to pay more for top quality TV brands.

According to the Channel View study conducted in April this year to uncover local consumers’ buying process, as well as usage and attitude towards televisions, the younger male generation displayed great levels of enthusiasm when it comes to technology. Over 70 percent of respondents in this segment said they were willing to spend more for top quality consumer electronic brands, would perform a lot of research before deciding on a specific TV, and that would consider themselves to be very knowledgeable about digital technology products and services. Furthermore, nearly three in five also agreed that they could not live without their TV.

“Singapore is Southeast Asia’s high-tech city-state and consumers here are heavily exposed to, and to a certain degree reliant on technology,” commented Ms. Shirleen Kok, General Manager of GfK Singapore. “Take the TV for instance. Technology today has equipped the TV set with numerous capabilities that allows it to perform a wide range of functions.”

Aside from the very basic function of utilizing the TV set to watch free-to-air programs, many Singaporeans are also using TV for a myriad of other purposes. Among the respondents, over one in three watched DVD using a standalone DVD player/recorder attached to the TV (36%) or view home movies (35%), a quarter were playing video games using a game console, while other less common TV usage included making and receiving video calls (19%), viewing photos/slideshows (21%), downloading shows from the Internet (15%), and watching programs from the Internet using an IPTV service (8%).

“The TV set is considered a fundamental household electronic product in the Singapore context today. In fact, it is very common nowadays to see more than one set in each household,” observed Ms Kok. “GfK Singapore retail audit reported 131,000 television sets being sold in the first three months of this year alone. Gauging by the results of the Channel View study, 41 percent of TVs are bought to replace an existing set, 32 percent are for upgrading purposes, while one in every seven units are purchased as an additional set for the home.”