Tuesday, 22nd January, 2008
DSG INTERNATIONAL CONSIGNS ANALOGUE TELEVISIONS TO HISTORY
- UK�s biggest electrical retailing group becomes first to discontinue sales of analogue televisions in the UK
DSG international plc becomes the first electrical retailer to terminate all purchases of analogue televisions and move to a 100% digital television range. No further orders will be placed for analogue televisions once existing commitments are fulfilled.
The Group�s chains Currys, PC World and Dixons.co.uk will begin to transition television ranges to digital-only with immediate effect.
DSG international is the market leader in the sale of televisions in the UK. In the last twelve months, the Group has sold approaching 2 million televisions through its Currys, PC World and Dixons brands in the UK. DVD recorders featuring analogue tuners will also be removed from the range.
Store colleagues will offer buyers of remaining analogue televisions the option of a digital set-top box to ensure that the televisions are capable of receiving digital broadcasts once switchover takes place. A scaled-up information campaign in stores will include literature, prominent display materials and trained staff who provide clear, impartial guidance on options. Guidance will be designed with vulnerable groups including the elderly particularly in mind.
Peter Keenan, managing director of Currys, said: �We believe that it is appropriate to ensure that our customers are able to select from a future-proof range of televisions. Integrated digital televisions are relatively simple to operate, offer superior technology and are an important window on the digital future. They are now available for less than �150 from our stores.�
Analogue televisions are still widely available from UK retailers and DSG international has opted to discontinue its analogue range for practical and environmental purposes. Today, a third of televisions (32%) sold in the UK are still analogue, a position that DSG international believes is inappropriate. Already, more than 90% of televisions sold today by DSG international are digital.
Peter Keenan added: �We are concerned at the high volumes of analogue televisions still on sale in the UK and we favour early transition to a digital only range. Digital provides a better deal for customers and reduces waste by removing the requirement for soon-to-be-obsolete analogue tuners in our television range and the unnecessary purchase of extra digital set-top boxes.�
Ford Ennals, Chief Executive, Digital UK, the independent body coordinating the digital television switchover, said: �This announcement is further evidence that analogue television�s days are numbered. Switchover has already started and by 2012 will make digital television the standard for all UK households. It�s hardly surprising therefore that many consumers question why analogue products are still being made and sold.�
He added: �DSG international are to be congratulated for taking a lead in this area and I hope others will quickly follow suit. Currys in Whitehaven went all-digital last year and proved a vital source of advice and switchover ready equipment for the local community. As switchover rolls out around the country, electrical retailers of all sizes have a vital role to play in ensuring their products and their customers are ready for this very significant change.�
The shift from analogue to digital transmission in the UK started in Whitehaven, Cumbria, in Autumn 2007. The Borders region will be the first major geographical area to switch to digital transmission later this year.
Digital television offers many practical benefits over its analogue predecessor, including a considerably wider range of channels and programmes, a host of interactive services and true widescreen broadcasts. It also offers improved picture and sound quality. The vast majority of new programmes commissioned and developed in the UK are now produced in widescreen format. – Ends –
More information:
Mark Webb, DSG international plc, 07834 256779
Hamish Thompson, Twelve Thirty Eight Ltd, 07702 684290
About DSG international plc
DSG international is one of Europe’s leading specialist electrical retailers. We have more than 1,300 stores and online stores, spanning 28 countries and employing 40,000 people. More than 100 million customers shop in-store and online with us every year.
Our retail and e-tail brands include PC World, Currys and Dixons.co.uk in the UK and Ireland, Elkj�p in the Nordic countries, UniEuro in Italy, Kotsovolos in Greece, Electro World in Central Europe, Greece and Turkey, PC City in Spain, Italy and Sweden, and Pixmania.com across Europe.
We operate a multi-channel approach to electrical retailing and offer customers a comprehensive range of after sales services. We also run a multi-brand business-to-business operation in the UK.
About Currys
Currys is the UK’s largest electrical retailer. Currys’ extensive product range includes digital vision, DVD, home theatre, audio, photographic technology, cooking, laundry, refrigeration, computing, communications and small domestic appliances.
On 5 April 2006 Currys announced its intention to extend its brand into 190 High Street stores formerly occupied by Dixons, rebranding them as Currys.digital and significantly increasing their product range. Re-branding is now complete.
Currys’ distribution teams manage stock going into stores every day of the week and deliver to nearly two million customers’ homes each year. The Currys chain, including Currys.digital has 510 stores in a combination of High Street and out of town locations. There are nine Currys stores in the Republic of Ireland (as at January 2008).
About PC World
PC World is Britain’s largest specialist chain of computer superstores. The superstores offer more than 5,000 product lines including extensive ranges of PCs, laptops, printers, software, peripherals and accessories from the major brands, as well as many PC World exclusive products.
In-store PC Clinics offer on the spot advice and service. Component Centres offer a ‘one-stop shop’ for customers with advanced technical knowledge, providing a vast choice of PC components and upgrade products at competitive prices. In 2007, PC World won Retail Week’s Product Innovation of the Year award, for its Data Recovery service.
Every PC World store has an in-store business centre staffed by experienced business specialists. They offer local companies face-to-face help and advice with choosing the best IT solutions. There are 160 stores in the UK and 12 in the Republic of Ireland (as January 2008).
About Dixons
Dixons.co.uk is the UK’s best-known retailer of consumer electronics. Its site welcomes more than one million visitors every month. From camcorders to plasma TVs and DVD players to laptops, Dixons.co.uk has been offering customers the very best and very latest technology since it first opened as a single photographic studio in 1937. On 5 April 2006 we announced our intention to focus Dixons.co.uk exclusively on e-commerce operations. Its High Street stores in the UK have been rebranded as Currys.digital and now offer a wider range of products and services, including major and small appliances. Dixons.co.uk will continue to offer new technologies at market beating prices. Our eight Dixons stores in the Republic of Ireland were unaffected by the rebranding, as were our 25 Dixons tax-free airport stores.
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