Epson: A Pioneer in 3LCD projector

In a chat with VARINDIA, P. Satyanarayana- Director, Visual Products, Epson India discusses about the India projector market, its 3LCD projector technology and strategy to maintain the top position

How do you see the upcoming projector market in India ?
Epson has a market share of 29.9% in India and globally it is 35% . So there is a scope to try and catch up the world wide market share. If you look a few years back, projector was a luxury, but today it is no more. Also, now with  so many villas and apartments coming up, we have the home theater application which is actually gaining momentum in Indian market. We see quite a bit of home theater projectors  being sold where in customers are trying to have one dedicated room in their house with this home theater application in order to get the theater effect. In next 5 years projector market is going to grow in a big way. 

Kindly brief about your market positioning?
There are 2 key technologies in the projection market, one is 3LCD and the other is DLP. Epson is the pioneer in the 3LCD because this is our own technology which we have invented. The prime difference between 3LCD and DLP is actually the output of the projector. In 3LCD, by 3000 lumens we mean both the white light output and also the colour light output. When it comes to 3000 lumens DLP projector it means only the white light. Colour is actually close to 500 to 600 lumens. So this is the major difference. When the same image is projected on the screen by these two projectors side by side, customers can clearly see the vividness and brightness. 

What strategy you have adopted to be in the top position? 
We are trying to use multiple activities to keep ourselves floating in the same position- one is channel, second is end customers and third is association with System Integrators. For last one and a half years we have been consistently coming out with some programs so that channel promotes Epson product. Secondly, we have started organising the colour light output seminar to educate customers. We educate the customer to not just look at white light brightness in the projector but also colour light output. Third, we are also trying to associate with the System Integrators. There are quite a few high end customers who will be looking for audio visual solutions and these solutions are provided by some audio visual integrators or some consultants in the industry.

 
What are the verticals those have adopted in 3LCD technology?
Basically if you look at 3LCD, Epson was primarily there from the entry level upto the mid and high-end level, which is upto 10000 lumens category. Last year we have introduced high brightness range which is going upto 25000 lumens. That is where we have introduced laser series or laser lights projectors, which is starting from 7000 lumens to 25000 lumens. Epson was not present in this particular segment and is first to introduce 3LCD projector in the laser light source at 25000 lumens. So now we are trying to consolidate and probably make our mark in the high lumen segmentation also.  

If you look at high brightness projectors, these are used in small medium auditoriums. These projectors can be used in museums, concerts, education institution and training centers. It also used for Event management. These are the different areas where this high brightness range will continue to effect.