South Korean electronic major Samsung will restart manufacturing LED TVs in India through contract manufacturers from early next year, according to sources.
Samsung, which had shifted its TV manufacturing to Vietnam, recently entered into an agreement with Dixon Technologies for production in India. Presently, Samsung imports its portfolio of TVs from Vietnam under the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two countries.
Samsung is also in discussions with other contract manufacturers to meet the demand in the Indian market as the company is the largest player in the segment.
In September, the government had removed 5 per cent custom duty imposed on import of open cell TV panels (used to manufacture LED TVs) in order to promote local manufacturing. However, Samsung will continue to import lower volume models from Vietnam and other locations, they said.
The Indian TV market is 14 million units annually. The majority of the market is controlled by three brands — Samsung, LG and Sony. However, these brands are witnessing strong competition from new entrants like Xiaomi, Vu and Thomson.
