Prestigio takes aim at Western display market

Accord to ex-Philips guy, Viktor Primak, product manager at the firm, it turned over $70 million in its last financial year but those sales are mostly in central and eastern Europe.

Prestigio said that its worldwide distributor is Asbis, and it has 16 local distributors, 328 retail partners and 1500 resellers - again mostly in central and eastern Europe.

Primak claimed that sales of its LCD based products equalled giants like Sony in that neck of the woods.

Market shares in Solvakia amount to 11.3%, 7.9% un Bulgaria and Russia 2.4%. The company has similar market shares in other eastern European countries.

How tough is it going to be for Primak to break into Western Europe?

Primak said that its Emporio, Signore, Conte and Visconte range of display monitors cover the high end to the low end. It has factories in Korea, Czech Republic, Russia and China. The firm has a whole heap of LCD monitors outside the conference area.

The high end Emporio line have tinted screen coating, stereo speakers, a viewing angle of 150/150 - there are two models in this range. The Signore line are 15-inch and 17-inch monitors with a response time of 16ms. The panels are sourced from both Samsung and AU Optronics. The P175 has a response time of 12ms - it's a 17-inch model made in Russia. The only non-Russian component is the panel, said Primak.

He said that Prestigio exclusively focuses on LCD and plasma technologies. It has an ODM relationship with South Korean factories and we think Primak means Samsung.

Response times for the products are between 12ms and 16ms, he said. Low overheads means the firm is fast to market.

Price and performance will be the key to Prestigio's success, claimed Primak.