Smart TVs are no longer smart in India; 32% consumers complained of problems

New Delhi: Smart TV demand has surged in the last 5 years, thanks to the OTT revolution. However, there is a problem. Over 32% of consumers complained that their smart TVs developed a snag in less than five years.

A LocalCircles survey revealed that 61% of consumers said TV lasted for five-plus years. 13% of those surveyed indicated that their television worked properly from one year to 3 years. 32% of consumers said their last television developed a snag in less than 5 years. This does not speak well of the quality of many televisions sold in the market or through e-commerce platforms.

The survey revealed that the majority of the household consumers had to have their TVs repaired post the warranty period and only 3% availed it within the warranty period.

LocalCircles surveyed to understand how households purchased a new TV set in the last 5 years. Whether they have faced any problems with the new television so far, and if so, how did they get it repaired?

The survey received over 36,000 responses from consumers located in 329 districts of India. 64% of respondents were men, while 36% of respondents were women. 44% of respondents were from tier 1, 32% from tier 2 and 24% of respondents were from tier 3, 4, and rural districts.

With the growth of OTT platforms and households replacing their LCD TV with Smart TVs, demand for them has surged in the last 5 years.

India's Smart TV Market alone was valued at USD 11.53 billion in 2023. India Smart TV revenue is expected to grow at a CAGR of 16.57% from 2024 to 2030, reaching nearly USD 33.72 Billion by 2030.

However, with middle and upper-middle-class households upgrading to Smart TVs in the last 5 years, the complaints have also risen.

35% bought television on e-commerce platforms:

There are endless options for buying televisions, including EMIs through stores offline and online. 57% of consumers visited a retail electronics store and purchased smart TVs, 6% called a retail electronics store and got it home delivered, and 35% placed an order via an e-commerce platform and got it home delivered, 2% gave no clear response.

The majority chose to get it repaired locally:

According to the survey, of the total 11,005 responses, only 35% got it repaired by the brand/ company while the other opted for local repairs and television upgrades.

The biggest chunk of 31% of respondents chose to get it “repaired locally and paid reasonable charges”; 29% got it repaired from the “company and paid excessive charges”;

3% revealed that they got “it repaired from the company and paid reasonable charges”; 3% “got it repaired from the company without charges as it was under warranty”.

The findings indicate that televisions are failing much faster than in the previous decades when televisions would function for 5-7 years normally and sometimes even 10 years without needing any repairs.

"With a lack of standardization of services, the companies price their service/repair at a premium. On the other side, local vendors repair at low costs. However, sometimes they can cause damage, making things worse. The need of the hour is for the creation of standards and making programs like the right to repair operational. Such consumer-centric programs are just on paper currently," LocalCircles opined.