Rising Calls to Cancel Tokyo Olympics... Is the 'TV Boom' Also Slipping Away?

Mori Yoshiro, Chairperson of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Organizing Committee (left), is having a video conference with John Coates, Chairperson of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Coordination Commission (on screen), in April last year to discuss the venues and schedule of the postponed Games. (Tokyo Kyodo=Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] As the Tokyo Olympics, postponed to July this year due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), face the possibility of being canceled altogether, the domestic TV industry, which had anticipated an 'Olympic boom,' is closely monitoring the situation. In years when international sports events such as the Olympics or the World Cup are held, TV sales tend to rise, but if the Tokyo Olympics are canceled, this upward effect cannot be expected this year.

According to global market research firm Omdia on the 25th, the worldwide TV shipment volume this year is expected to reach 224.221 million units. This is about 4 million units more than last year's 223.829 million units. Another market analysis firm, TrendForce, also predicted in its early-year forecast that global TV shipments would increase by 2.8% year-on-year to 223 million units this year.

A representative from the domestic home appliance industry said, "In years when major sports events like the Olympics or the World Cup are held, TV sales increase due to demand for more vivid broadcasts," adding, "The forecast for increased TV shipments this year reflected the impact of the Tokyo Olympics, but with the possibility of the event being canceled, we are watching the situation closely."

In fact, during the most recent Summer Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, global TV shipments were 222.7368 million units, while in 2017, a year without major international sports events, shipments decreased to 215.167 million units. Then, in 2018, when the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics and the Russia World Cup were held, shipments rose again to 221.363 million units. Domestically, ahead of the Russia World Cup, sales of large TVs increased by 35% compared to the previous year in 2018.

Pedestrians are walking in front of the Olympic rings sculpture installed at Odaiba Marine Park in Tokyo. (Tokyo AP=Yonhap News)

If this kind of special demand disappears, it would be a significant loss for the domestic TV industry, which accounts for about half of global TV sales revenue. According to Omdia, as of the third quarter of last year, Samsung Electronics held a 32.0% share of global TV market revenue, and LG Electronics held 16.8%. An industry insider said, "TV sales, which sharply declined early last year due to the spread of COVID-19, rebounded in the second half as people spent more time at home," adding, "We expected this trend to be supported by the Tokyo Olympics boom this year, but it has become difficult to predict the situation."

Earlier, foreign media such as the British daily The Times reported on the 22nd, citing an anonymous Japanese passport official, that the Japanese government had internally concluded that the Olympics should be canceled this year. It is difficult to hold the event normally as thousands of COVID-19 cases are occurring daily in Japan. On the other hand, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee have so far dismissed the 'cancellation theory.' The IOC and the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee postponed the Tokyo Olympics, originally scheduled for last year, by one year due to the spread of COVID-19, and decided to hold it from July 23 to August 8.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.