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Vizio

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Not to be confused with Microsoft Visio.
VIZIO Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryConsumer electronics
FoundedCosta Mesa, California, USA (2002)
HeadquartersIrvine, California, USA
Key people
William Wang, Founder / CEO
ProductsAV Electronics; LCD TVs, HD Surround Sound systems, HDTV accessories, LCD computer monitors, Laptops, All-in-one computers
Revenue$2.9 billion (2010)[1]
Websitewww.vizio.com

Vizio is a privately held producer of consumer electronics, based in Irvine, California, USA. It was founded in October 2002 as V Inc.[2] Vizio's major partner in the consumer electronics arena is AmTran Technology, a Taiwan-based OEM/ODM that manufactures more than half of the televisions sold by Vizio[3] and owns a 23% stake in the company.[3][4] Vizio also manufactures its products in Mexico and China under agreements with ODM assemblers in those countries.[5]

History

The company started in 2002 by William Wang, Laynie Newsome and Ken Lowe with $600,000 and three employees. In 2006 the revenue was estimated around $700 million, and in 2007 it was estimated to have exceeded $2 billion. Vizio is known for aggressively pricing their HDTVs against major competitors.[2]

On October 19, 2010, Vizio signed a 4-year contract to sponsor the college football's annual Rose Bowl game in Pasadena, California, beginning with the 2011 Rose Bowl presented by Vizio and ending with the 2014 Vizio BCS National Championship Game.[6]

As of 2012, Vizio has over 400 employees.[7] About half work at its headquarters in Irvine, California in engineering, design, sales, and operations, while the other half are employed at a call center in Dakota Dunes, South Dakota.[7][8]

Products

Vizio currently primarily produces television sets. Vizio became the largest LCD TV seller (by volume) in North America for the second quarter of 2007, with 606,402 TVs sold, a 76% jump from the previous quarter. Its market share increased from 9.4% to 14.5%.[9] In September 2008, Vizio started selling LCD TVs to Costco in Japan. In February 2009, Vizio announced they would stop production of plasma televisions and would focus on the LED-backlit LCD displays instead.[10] At the CES 2009, Vizio introduced a 240 Hz LED-backlit VF551XVT 55" LCD TV.

Vizio also produces other audio/video equipment such as High Definition Surround Sound systems, LCD computer monitors and HDTV accessories. The company released its first Blu-ray Disc player in August 2009.[11] In 2011 Vizio extended its portfolio of electronics devices to mobile phones, with the name Via Phone, and tablets, named Via Tablet. The new phones and tablets were shown at 2011 Consumer Electronics Show.[12]

Vizio unveiled a new range of televisions including Vizio's M and R line with 65" screens; ultra-wide televisions with 50", 58", and 71" screen sizes; two all-in-one desktop computers (24" and 27"); three notebooks (one 14" and two 15"); and a 10" tablet at the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show.[13][14][15]

Tablets

  • VTAB1008: 8.1"x6.6"x0.48" thick.[16]

Ultrabooks

Recently Vizio introduced its 14-inch ultrabook Vizio CT14 with the third gen Intel Core i3 processors and 128 GB SSD.[17] On October 2012 Vizio updated this series with a new Windows 8 OS. This change was also applied to the Vizio notebook series.

Warranty issues

Vizio denies warranty requests if the product is not purchased from an authorized store. A store list is however not available on Vizio.com.[18]

References

  1. ^ http://www.inc.com/inc5000/profile/Vizio
  2. ^ a b Lawton, Christopher, Iwatani Kane, Yukari and Dean, Jason."U.S. Upstart Takes On TV Giants in Price War", The Wall Street Journal, 2008-04-15. Retrieved on April 15, 2008.
  3. ^ a b [1], by Russell Flannery, Forbes Magazine, 2008-12-04. Retrieved on February 4, 2011.
  4. ^ [2], Iwatani Kane, Yukari. Wall Street Journal, 2010-01-07. Retrieved on February 4, 2011.
  5. ^ http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/12/21/vizio-ceo-predicts-declining-tv-prices-possible-ipo/
  6. ^ Chris Casacchia (2010-10-19). "Vizio Nabs Four-Year Rose Bowl Presenting Sponsorship". Orange County Business Journal. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ a b Nilay Patel (2012-06-15). "Vizio reboots the PC: a quiet American success story takes on sleeping giants". The Verge. Retrieved 2012-08-26. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ Dave Dreeszen (2010-02-24). "Vizio Direct leaves North Sioux for the Dunes". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 2012-08-26. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ Vizio tops in LCD TV sales in second quarter at CNET.com
  10. ^ Another Manufacturer Drops Plasma
  11. ^ http://www.engadgethd.com/2009/05/03/vizios-vbr100-blu-ray-player-delayed-until-august/
  12. ^ Vizio Extends Battle Plan
  13. ^ http://gizmodo.com/5873949/vizio-plans-to-beat-pcs-sleepy-giants-at-their-own-game
  14. ^ http://gizmodo.com/5874294/the-new-vizio-pcs-and-notebooks-are-worthy-of-apple
  15. ^ http://www.swogo.com/blog/?p=1174
  16. ^ Vizio Tablet VTAB1008 Review: A Pleasant Surprise at a Value Price- PC World Magazine
  17. ^ Vizio Ultrabook
  18. ^ Customer complaints at www.amazon.com about Vizio
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