Philips Withdraws from Consumer Electronics Market

Philips Withdraws from Consumer Electronics Market

Philips has decided to exit the Consumer Electronics market and has sold the remnants of its business from the sector to Japanese company Funai Electric. Consumer Electronics had once been a core focus for Philips. But ever increasing competition from players such as Apple and Samsung seems to have crowded the Dutch Company out of the space.

This news comes hot on the heels of Philips posting steep fourth quarter losses due to restructuring, which has been implemented for greater future cost savings, as well as a fine for price fixing in the past. Funai Electric will be paying a paltry US$150 million for taking over Philips' CE business.

Philips has been in the process of leaving the Consumer Electronics game for a while. They had moved out of the TV, Monitor and smartphone sectors in the past. Philips will now be concentrating on the medical equipment market, which generated 40 percent of the company's total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Source: Wall Street Journal Online