Carol Anne Dias, Regional Head – MEA at TPV Technology (AOC / Philips Monitors) discusses how the brand brings a strong proposition to the market

Discuss the market outlook for displays in the region? What are the strong growth segments for the displays market in the region? Do you have a focus across entry to premium segments?
Though there is a decline in the regular display industry, we still see a fairly good demand on the Gaming Monitors within the MEA region. The trend is increasing for the high ends and gamers industry. The main focus for the next coming months is on our niche products like the VR and the Agon series of Gaming monitors.
Elaborate focus on the gaming line-up with AGON? Have there been very recent launches?
Our AGON series seeks to reach above and beyond the expectations of our gamers with the highest visual precision and image quality. We pride on its features like its Response times of 1ms (TN), 144Hz and higher refresh rates, height-adjustability, speakers and USB 3.0 ports. The combination of materials on the backside of the monitor gives the AGON an elegant and stylish finish, to perfectly supplement high-end gaming battle stations.
The AGON lineup includes 10 new gaming monitors. The current line up range from 24” to 35”, Along with our newly launched curved monitors Ultra-Wide, with resolutions from FHD all the way to 4K.

Is the gaming segment seeing growth in light of VR related advancements in PC gaming?
The next generation talk is all about gamers and the VR market. AOC Plan to launch their new VR for this region in the last quarter this year.
VR will not only be for the obvious: gaming (and the military) but there are also video entertainment, live events, education, healthcare, engineering and even retail and real estate. If you want to get a first-hand impression of your new home, hundreds or even thousands of kilometers away, from your old apartment’s couch? Just don a VR headset and walk around… And the list will get even longer the further the technology evolves.

Is AOC supporting professional gaming tournaments in the region? Are there any joint initiatives with any other vendors?
As AOC gaming products is just picking up pace in the MEA markets , we are closely working with the Gaming Zones at the moment and plan to sponsor tournaments in the later part of the year. AOC MEA is currently working with vendors like AMD, PNY- NVIDIA & more.

Elaborate on how your displays are positioned for different user expectations/requirements?
Since TPV technology limited are the leading manufacturers for some of the well-known display brands in the industry, also distributing their own brand AOC along with having the license agreement with Philips to sell Philips branded monitors globally, there is a wide range of offerings for the consumers from sizes ranging 18’’-43’’inch, Eco-Friendly technology, Ergonomic Displays, 4K Ultra-thin designs, Eye Care-Flicker free & Anti Blue Light tech, Enhanced Viewing with Higher resolutions, like 4K Ultra HD, Wide Quad HD and Ultra-Wide Quad HD, catering to deliver a high quality visual experience that precisely addresses the needs of users from home entertainment or learning to general productive work, or highly specialized fields like graphic arts or competitive gaming.

Discuss the demand for ultra slim displays and for portable displays from the corporate segment and SMB?
With more partners moving away from the volume driven business to a more sustainable Value-driven business, there is an incline in the demand for high end displays from ultra slim designs.

Discuss the split between retail and commercial segments in terms of sell out in the region?
At this point in time, the sellout is predominantly from the commercial segments. Having said that, we are looking to expand into the retail segments for the high end niche products and the gaming series.

Elaborate on distribution strategies for different markets in the region? Which have been stable markets over the current year?
We are strengthening our distribution partners within the portfolio of the MEA region, for the AOC and Philips brand, by categorizing between regular displays and Gaming specific displays and working with Sub-distributors within these segments. Markets such as UAE, South Africa and Saudi have been predominantly stable over the year.

What are the channel engagement initiatives including aby sell out enablement? Are you also having partners including system integrators who have the reach/expertise to sell into turnkey projects that include display solutions?
Our first initial goal already been implemented is channel engagement with aggressive channel sell out plans for our partners & resellers , as the key focus for the team is sellout and generate demands. We are working with our current distributors to tap the system integrators and monitor their requirements and meet demands.