The present and future of Home Cinema Market

With the pandemic forcing everyone indoors and bringing the focus to in-home entertainment, the home cinema market is more relevant than ever. You could even say that the home cinema market is important for keeping people sane in these times. That’s not all, people are now growing more accustomed to watching shows on-demand and in better quality.

 

This interview with Mr. Vijay Sharma, Country Head, Optoma corporation, explores the home cinema industry, its growth, and how the pandemic impacted the industry.

 

 

About Optoma

 

The Optoma Corporation is a multinational company that provides visual display products globally. The brand has over two decades of experience in the field starting from 2000. Optoma is part of the Coretronic Group and is vertically integrated with its parent company. The company designs and manufactures projection and audio products that are leaders in the global market.

 

“Optoma is a No1. DLP Projector Brand worldwide and having the largest portfolio in 4K UHD projectors. Optoma provides a large screen display solution with a comprehensive visual product portfolio in Projection, Quad LED Display and Interactive Flat Panel.”

 

Solutions from Optoma are engaging, reliable, and innovative, and offered across every market segment including professional and large venues, home, corporate, education, and portable sectors. 

 

Optoma also prioritizes continuous technological innovation with its products.

 

“Optoma has focused on projection system development and marketing since it was established. With full competence of resource distribution and control on value-added chain, Optoma is the true pioneer in the world of projection technology.”

 

Recently, Optoma has been busy expanding the scope of existing products and announcing new solutions- the platform recently launched its ‘Warping Reality’ collection of immersive projection solutions.

 

“‘Warping Reality’ collection of immersive projection solutions are suitable for an array of sophisticated environments, from art installations, floor projection, stage backgrounds to sensory rooms, simulators and training facilities. These projectors are handpicked by Optoma’s team of technical specialists, the series includes a line-up of DuraCore laser professional installation projectors and ingenious accessories, all designed with the intent to bring your wildest imaginations to life.”

 

Optoma offers a wide variety of products, in a broad price range, suited for different markets. The company has a strong market hold in India as well. Their range of projectors for home use are priced from Rs. 85,000- Rs. 25,00,000. Optoma uses the best technology in the market to offer multiple options at every level and price point.

 

“What we are able to bring for Indian consumers is a product and technology ahead of competitors due to this strength.”

 

 

COVID-19 and Home Cinema

 

The pandemic has altered every aspect of our day-to-day lives and has affected almost every sector in some way. The projector industry was not immune to this trend and took a hit.

 

“The Projector industry witnessed a 60% drop in the demand especially from education, corporate sector and the Government segment.”

 

But for companies like Optoma, there has been a silver lining, as there was a positive shift in the home segment. People stayed at home and binged on Netflix more than ever. The new normal was a world of social distancing, work from home models, and virtual meetings.

 

“Demand for at-home digital media grew significantly, as habit-formation and ease of access emerge as drivers. OTT platforms and digital media have already been the biggest beneficiaries.”

 

So the consumption of home-based entertainment solutions and content increased significantly, which led to increased demand.

 

“We have witnessed a three-fold increase in our home portfolio business. Despite all the upheavals in 2020, Optoma is the only brand which registered growth and doubled its market share for overall business in the projector industry.”

 

Owing to the variety of business it offered, Optoma was perhaps able to come out of the pandemic stronger than before, unlike its competitors who offered a narrower range of products.

 

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Home Cinema Market Trends

 

“There is tremendous growth expected in the home entertainment industry whether it is content, display, connectivity etc.”

 

Forecasts say that the home theatre market is poised to grow by $5.87 billion during 2021-2027, at a CAGR of 7%. This is in part owed to the pandemic but was also the general direction of growth even before.

 

Changes in customer behavior show a shift from small screen digital devices and TVs to larger screens. This behavior was magnified by the events of 2020. This paves the way for new and innovative solutions, where “consumers are bringing the entertainment in larger than life-size to their homes, living rooms & bedrooms, whether it is movies, events, sports or shows.” To fuel these visions, technology must match the demand.

 

“Technological advancements in projectors are playing a pivotal role through affordable 4K, long life Laser Engine and high brightness products which now don’t require dark rooms or can work efficiently in ambient light to give users big-screen experiences of 120” and above and synchronize the 4K content with the right display device to provide us with exhilarating experiences.”

 

Thus with the improvement of the quality of content being made available for consumers to watch, the need for technological solutions that gives the best experience from that content increases, with it even being said that “the pleasure of watching 4K content can only be relished if the screen size is 120 and above.”

 

Optoma provides solutions that are in line with this future, where “Home Cinema solutions has moved from aspirational space to a need or requirement.” From the early adopters who got exposed to novel entertainment solutions abroad, the rise in per capita income combined with products that can offer world-class technology at an affordable price led to the adoption of these solutions on such a growing scale.

 

“With technological product, Optoma P2 Laser 4K UHD Ultra Short Throw projector, you only require 14” distance from the wall to create this screen and that becomes the game-changer for small and medium homes. Large homes these days are dedicating a space/room to create a home cinema from the design phase itself. All these trends point towards exhilarating experiences at home.”

 

These shifts carry us all the way towards an increasingly digital future of smart homes and connectivity. Smart technology is integrated into projectors for a futuristic experience.

 

“Optoma was Pioneer in the segment with the Introduction of Award-winning Alexa supported UHD51A product. Smart Technology has enabled the projector to become an independent entertainment source without requiring to be connected to any AV receiver kind of equipment. Now the projectors have their own operating system and can work with smartphones as well. Almost all OTT services can now run independently without the need for any wired correction.”

 

Optoma P2 even comes with a feature that enables the projector to convert the image into an art piece by famous world artists, which is integrated with the projector without additional cost.

 

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Future of Home Cinema

 

“Home cinema will become an integral part of every middle-class home in future.”

 

With the future of rising expectancies and customer demand, and a move to smart homes and an integrated technological landscape, the future of the home cinema market looks bright and filled with innovation.

 

“With the rise of new digital technologies amid rising consumer expectations and differing cultural expectations there will be many new opportunities that we will see in future. Customer always remains the king hence the organisations which can better adapt to this changing landscape will be the winners of future…

...Optoma, being a worldwide leader in market share and technology, will definitely be a preferred brand for Indian consumers.”