According to figures released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), manufacturer-to-dealer sales of aftermarket autosound products increased by nine percent during the month of May to nearly $208 million in sales revenue, up from $190 million in May 2000.Ringing up $114 million in unit sales – a rise of 34 percent over May 2000 – in-dash CD players are responsible for much of the increase in the aftermarket autosound category, making up more than 50 percent of the category’s total sales. Mobile speakers also enjoyed solid growth during the month with flush-mount speakers up by 12 percent to $21 million in unit sales and midrange/tweeter packages up an outstanding 105 percent to $1.6 million. Factory-to-dealer sales of bass speakers increased by 29 percent with $17 million in revenue, as did enclosed speakers, also growing by 29 percent to $3.6 million in sales.
Additionally, the surround sound speaker systems category more than doubled to $9 million in manufacturer-to-dealer sales during May 2001. In the audio separates category, sales of tuners and power amplifiers, many of which are equipped with surround sound processing, posted gains of 15 percent and 26 percent, respectively, during the month of May. Amplifiers with surround sound processing lead the category with gains of 39 percent to $1.3 million in unit sales.
The growth in surround sound speaker system sales represents an increase of 125 percent over May 2000, with sales of five speaker packages increasing dollar volumes a phenomenal 479 percent over the same period last year. Total factory-to-dealer sales of these packages accounted for $2.4 million in revenues for manufacturers, up from $410,000 in May of 2000.
"The increases in aftermarket autosound and home theater component sales are evidence that consumers want to get the most out of their entertainment experience, regardless of location," says Sean Wargo, senior industry analyst for CEA. "Because both autosound and home theater products offer the flexibility to be purchased as individual components, consumers see them as a good value and are more likely to buy these products during economic dips when expendable incomes are slightly lower, as we've seen in recent months.
"Despite an overall drop in audio sales for the month of May, the long term outlook for the audio industry remains optimistic as consumers continue to enjoy all the benefits digital audio has to offer."
For more information, call CEA at 703-907-7600.
Link for more info: www.CE.org
