Subsidy repayments push Chinese TV makers into the red

Statistics from All View Cloud, a Beijing-based home appliances consultancy, showed 46.74 million TVs were sold last year, a 4.8 percent increase.

Sales were worth 157.2 billion yuan, a 7.5 percent jump.

It predicted TV sales will reach 47.39 million this year, which would represent a 1.4 percent rise, with revenue reaching 161.1 billion yuan, a 2.5 percent growth.

Dong Min, general manager of AVC's TV department, said: "Although the overall prices of TVs have declined due to more and more Internet TV brands entering into the market, it has given birth to new selling points and stunts, which could stimulate consumer desire for shopping to some degree."

However, he ruled out Internet TV brands taking a dominant position in the market, adding "sales of Internet brands will reach 10 million units, accounting for 20 percent of the market share".