AUSSIES:$3.6BIL ON DIGITAL LIFESTYLE PROD

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Aussies Spend $3.6 Billion on Digital Lifestyle Products
April  2006: Australian consumers spent approximately $3.6 billion on digital products last year, according to the latest Canon Digital Lifestyle Index .
The CDLI, which covers digital still cameras, digital camcorders, inkjet printers, photo printers, DVD players, DVD recorders, games consoles, plasma TVs, LCD TVs, digital media players and multi-function devices is independent research commissioned by Canon and delivered by GfK Marketing Services. The latest report shows spending on these devices grew by more than 30% between 2004 to 2005, despite sizeable reductions in the cost of most digital products.
Digital still cameras attracted the largest investment of all categories, with a total spend of $471 million representing 22% of the market. They were followed by plasma TVs at 20% and digital media players (such as iPods and other MP3 players) at 16%. Demand for digital still camera continue to rise, despite the fact that more than four million were sold in Australia in the last three years. Although the average sales price of cameras has decreased, the regular release of upgraded products – often offering increased functionality at an even lower price – has consistently driven sales.
The report says the largest average price reductions have been for photo printers (down 52.8% or $122.15 to an average price of $108.09) making them much more accessible to consumers.  This drop in price is due to a number of factors, including increased distribution through large chains and bundling of photo printers with digital cameras and consumables.  Although photo printers accounted for the lowest proportion of spending ($10m or 0.4%), photo printer sales are climbing consistently with second half sales of 84,655 units marking an increase of 31.1% compared to the same half in 2004. Sales of photo printers are forecast to increase steadily this year

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April 11, 2006 at 9:35 AM