Interview with Ivan Ivanov, Country Manager, LG Electronics Bulgaria for their company presentation at BEGE Expo 2011

This edition of BEGE EXPO managed to show the desire and the ambition of the companies operating on the Bulgarian market to offer products and services meeting the world standards in the lines of quality and functionality.

Would you present briefly the products, which you are demonstrating at BEGE Expo and what are the new technologies that you will present this year? 

As a consumer electronics manufacturer we want to provide the consumers with both quality and affordable 3D entertainment, no matter if they are at home or on the go. With the development of new technologies people are having ever increasing requirements about where, how and when they will entertain themselves. That’s why we have to constantly look for new solutions and offer innovative products combined with the most up-to-date content, whether it’s about 2D to 3D game converting or 3D movies online purchases. All products that we presented at the exhibition are part of LG’s 3D portfolio which the company is dynamically improving during the last year. It represents a total 3D solution for home and mobile entertainment. The visitors of BEGE EXPO had the opportunity to see the revolutionary products which set new standards in the technology industry. They are all result of LG’s determination to implement the 3D function in about 70% of its home entertainment products till the end of 2012. This year we managed to introduce a series of such products which are focused on the 3D functionality. Because LG is among the pioneers developing this feature, many of our products made world premiere as revolutionary solutions distinguished by unparalleled characteristics. Such products are the two 3D mobile devices: LG Optimus 3D – the first 3D glasses-free smartphone with tri-dual architecture and the first 3D tablet Optimus Pad. On our booth there were also models that are part of our very successful TV series CINEMA 3D offering the first certified flicker-free technology. And of course many other home entertainment products distinguished by stylish design and innovative functions, including Blu-ray home theatre systems. One of the main accents we showed at BEGE EXPO 2011 is the new 3D technology Film Patterned Retarder. It is used in our Cinema 3D TV and monitor series and we consider it is the key for the mass adoption of the 3D technology for home entertainment. The CINEMA 3D products provide the viewers with more comfortable and affordable 3D entertainment at home as their features include brighter picture, wide viewing angle and are much more affordable than the conventional 3D TVs and monitors. Another important feature which should be considered for the further penetration of the tri-dimensional entertainment is the 2D to 3D conversion ability with no need of additional devices which makes these displays perfect for playing games. The CINEMA 3D products work with lightweight and comfortable glasses which have no electric parts or batteries – that way they are lighter and more comfortable, especially for movie marathons with 3D content.

What are your impressions from the exhibition in general and also in terms of the new technologies presented?

I think that this edition of BEGE EXPO managed to show the desire and the ambition of the companies operating on the Bulgarian market to offer products and services meeting the world standards in the lines of quality and functionality. I think that we as consumers should positively evaluate this trend. Technology has become an invariable part of our lives and if high quality was treated as luxury a few years ago, now it is just part of the whole package. The focus has moved towards functionality – consumers want advanced technology which is more comfortable, affordable and let them personalize it according to their personal needs.I  think that these two elements are crucial – the functionality and the ability for customization, whether we are talking about additional abilities such as greater comfort when using the product, additional features or just ability for download and use of applications on smart TV or smartphone. Luckily we are now enjoying great variety of technological solutions created to satisfy different flavors. Such were the solutions we saw at BEGE EXPO 2011 - created according to the current consumer trends and needs. We are glad that LG portfolio was presented at the event and we managed to raise visitors’ attention and interest.

Are you planning to offer a product for the Internet sector? What are your expectations for this sector?

Web connectivity is one of the main directions that LG aims to develop and we already have considerable presence on this market and wide portfolio of products which offer Internet access and 3D functionality. Among these products is the 3D smartphone LG Optimus 3D which we showed during BEGE Expo 2011. LG also has a well-established network of partners which create 3D content like the global publisher of digital and social games Gameloft. Many of its 3D games are available for the owners of Optimus 3D who can enjoy either the pre-installed games on the phone or buy new 3D games online on special prices. Very soon we will expand the access to 3D games for the Optimus 3D owners by providing them even broader selection of content, which they will be able to download free of charge thanks to our partnership with Gameloft. Another direction which we are currently working on is the 3D smart TVs. LG is seeing a great potential for development on the smart TVs market. This is relatively new market the content producers have to focus on if they don’t want to be left a side by the new players that are coming. The apps development market for smart TVs is also a largely untapped market and I believe that it will become an important part of the gaming industry, even as important as the desktop and mobile PCs. This market has the potential to bring new revenue streams which weren’t available till this moment for the companies operating in gaming and entertainment industry. The only question is who will manage to take advantage of it and will take the leadership position on this emerging market. LG’s smart TVs provide quick and easy access to online content and apps. Just over a month ago LG, Philips and Sharp agreed to work together to define common technical requirements for their Smart TVs, based upon open standards such as HTML5, CE-HTML and HbbTV. The initiative aims to simplify the way applications are developed and offered, increasing productivity of the application ecosystem for the Smart TV industry.This partnership includes the development of apps which can work on the smart TVs of all three vendors. The creation of common ecosystem for TV apps will enable the developers to create more and of better quality TV apps and the consumer is the one that will benefit from it. Including apps starting from games, through video on demand (VoD), to access to the latest news published on your favorite website.

What is your opinion for the market situation in Bulgaria today and what are your expectations?

Parts of the Bulgarian consumers are still living with the perception that the local market is much behind compared to the developed (Western) markets. The truth is that if there are differences now, they are far less significant than they were before. The technology market is developing with incredible pace and the manufacturers are striving to meet the needs of their customers in all parts of the world where they operate. This process was further accelerated by the knowledge and ever increasing access to information which the customers enjoy – they know what is offered in the other countries and want to take advantage of all opportunities that are currently on offer. This year alone LG launched on the Bulgarian market some of its most innovative solutions. Just in a matter of a few months we presented part of our most innovative 3D products, including home entertainment solutions – CINEMA 3D TV series and mobile entertainment products as well – Optimus 3D which I already mentioned. At the same time we insist that our products meet the specifics of every market. Of course such differences exist and LG takes them into consideration when developing its products. As a step in this direction could be pointed our 3D Blu-ray home theater system LG HX806PE developed especially for Central and Eastern Europe.

Where do you think will focus product development in the coming years?

The product development is defined by the consumers, their needs and requirements to a great extend. Considering that we should permanently make researches on consumer attitudes. One of the main trends at the moment is connected to people’s willingness to have solutions which combine many features in one single device. On one hand that facilitates the clients by exempting them from the need to keep many devices and on other provides them with easy access to topical software upgrades. In regard to the function of technology as entertainment tool, there is quite clear trend – consumers want to enjoy real emotions no matter if they are at home, on the go or outside with friends. Games, movies, music and any other type of content they have access to should be as real as possible so that it could raise their natural reactions. Willing to meet this requirement LG directed its efforts towards 3D functionality improvement. We want to provide our clients with the greatest possible comfort and gain their high estimation as a company developing innovative products adapted to their preferences.

What do you think is the most important for the product success?

In reality it is very hard to be foreseen whether a product will achieve any success before it is actually on the market. The reason is that there are many factors that exercise influence on the final result. It is a great challenge for the manufacturers to create a solution which is distinguished by something exceptional and raises consumers’ interest as they have so many options to choose from. That is why in my opinion what is really valuable for the success of a product is its individuality.  It should possess a feature or function which is unique and puts additional value that no other product on the market could offer. That way it won’t be just one of the many offers on the market but a unique solution with unparalleled benefits.