YET ANOTHER CHINESE MAKER EMERGES TO SELL ‘ADVANCED’ FLAT-PANEL TVs

The trend to sourcing high-value TVs from China for distribution in the U.S. took a peculiar leap forward Thurs. with the announcement that a Cal. investment firm will distribute advanced digital flat-panel displays from Xiamen Overseas Chinese Electronic Co. (Xoceco), ranked among China’s Top-4 producers and considered by experts to be a leader in HD-resolution plasma and LCD displays.

According to Fountain View, Cal.-based Providential Holdings, the distribution arrangement with Xoceco is “worldwide” and expected to generate $15-$20 million revenue “immediately.” What wasn’t immediately clear was how the Xoceco-Providential deal would impact an existing arrangement whereby Xoceco-made CRT sets sourced through Minneapolis-based Prima are sold under the Advent and Jensen brands through No. 1 U.S. retailer Best Buy. Comment wasn’t available from Providential, Xoceco, Prima or Best Buy at our Thurs. deadline.

The specter of stiff anti-dumping tariffs vs. Xoceco and China’s other top TV makers might be more intriguing compared with any high-resolution specs and commodity pricing that any Providential-supplied sets might bring to premium-TV turf-wars at retail in the U.S. The Commerce Dept. plans on Nov. 21 to announce punitive tariffs against Chinese TV makers, a decision that was postponed from the original Oct. 9 announcement. There since has been a spate of announcements on prospective alliances that would give Chinese makers manufacturing bases in N. America, possibly enabling many to skirt U.S. controversies while still keeping prices low. It’s presumed that final assembly of any such goods would be based in Mexico using flat panels sourced from China and elsewhere in Asia.

Providential, an enigma in U.S. CE circles until its announced foray Thurs. into high-end TV, does have a track-record in CE products. It’s the company whose GameGo and VideoGo wireless systems will be sold through Wal-Mart this coming holiday selling season. They're wireless automotive entertainment systems that use an LCD to display images and sound from DVDs or DVD-based videogames that are patched-in through a console-mounted transceiver in the vehicle’s rear-seating area. Those packages, primarily aimed at families with kids, previously were available only through automakers and their dealerships.