Interactive display sales shrink slightly

Although last quarter grew 14 per cent globally year on year

Sales of interactive displays around the world shrank one per cent for the full 2011 year, although there were hints in the fourth quarter of a return to growth.

Colin Messenger (pictured), senior consultant at Futuresource, said last year saw about 850,000 units shipped around the globe. "The year ended with a one per cent volume reduction, compared with 2010. [But] considering the economic pressures, this is a resilient result, and there have been a number of strong regional success stories," he said.

Futuresource's latest Quarterly Insight report shows that sales were slightly weaker than in 2010 overall, but boosted by a strong performance in the final quarter, which enjoyed a 14 per cent growth rate compared with the final quarter of 2010.

"Almost 4.5 million interactive displays have been installed globally, with the technology taking a secure hold within the education sector, and there is still a huge opportunity to be exploited," Messenger said. "Although now more than ever companies operating within this sector need access to timely market intelligence to understand the opportunities and react ahead of the curve."

Regions that performed strongly in the Q4 included India, where nearly 14,000 units were sold in the quarter – equalling the nation's sales for the entire previous year, and Russia, where about 22,000 interactive displays were sold.

Conversely, the US saw a 19 per cent fall in sales in Q4, and is forecast to go on declining, although it should remain the largest interactive displays market for some time, according to Futuresource.