Sony, for the first time, is first in LCD TV shipments, according to a recently released study from DisplaySearch.
According to the report, Sony picked up a boost in share from 9.7 percent to 12.8 percent. Sony was the leading brand in the 40-inch to 44-inch, 45-inch to 49-inch and 50-inch to 54-inch screen-size categories.
DisplaySearch attributes this growth to Sony's alignment with big-box retailers focused on 40-inch-plus screen sizes and 1080p resolutions during the 2007 holiday season.
Also helping was Sony's increased focus in North America, which accounted for 29.5 percent of global LCD TV shipments for the company.
The other LCD TV highlights include:
Samsung climbed to No. 2 in LCD shipments at 12.3 percent, just half a percent behind Sony. Samsung was number two behind Sony in the 46-, 47- and 52-inch categories (ahead of Sharp in each case).
Vizio dropped from No. 2 to No. 3, though its unit share was nearly unchanged at 10.7 percent.
Sharp fell from No. 1 to No. 4, with the company's share falling almost 3 points to 8.4 percent.
Preliminary totals for LCD TVs rose 38 percent from quarter-to-quarter and 64 percent year-to-year to a record high of 9.1 million units.
LCD continues to capture share in the 42- and 50-inch categories from plasma technologies, which, in turn, is grabbing share from RPTV technologies in the 50-plus-inch category.
Panasonic continued to lead plasma sales with a 38.5 percent share on 81 percent quarter-to-quarter growth. However, on a year-to-year analysis, Panasonic's volume was up only 27 percent due to a strong comparison period.
Other highlights from the plasma category include:
Samsung gained about a point of share, remaining No. 2 with 46 percent quarter-to-quarter growth and 34 percent on year-to-year growth.
LG Electronics continued as the No. 3 brand ahead of Hitachi.
Panasonic led the 42-inch category with more than twice the volume of any other brand.
Pioneer led in the 60-inch-plus sales volume.