Sony and Toshiba Outsource LCD-TV Production

Sony and Toshiba are planning to outsource large segments of their liquid-crystal display television production to in order to cut costs.

The two companies are expected to outsource approximately 4.5 million LCD TV sets to Taiwanese manufacturers this year, which includes 3 million by Sony to Hon Hai Precision Industry, which also makes iPods, iPhones, and Intel motherboards, and 1.5 million by Toshiba to Compal Electronics, which also makes laptops for Dell, HP, and Toshiba.

With the outsourcing in place, Sony’s share of televisions manufactured by other companies is expected to touch about 20%. Similarly, Toshiba’s share of televisions manufactured by other companies will reach 20%.

The move is part of Sony’s strategy to raise the market share in the BRIC’s countries of Brazil, Russia, India, and China by releasing lower-priced models. It aims to increase its global LCD TV sales to 17 million units in fiscal 2008 compared to 10.6 million units last year.