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A one-time pioneer in the consumer electronics market, Philips has been forced to concede defeat in most of the more lucrative sectors of the market as a result of intense competition from more agile competitors from the US and South Korea. It has effectively withdrawn altogether from what were once leading positions in flat screen TVs, home video, audio entertainment and electrical components. Any products in those sectors which still carry the Philips name are produced under license by other manufacturers. In a marketplace now dominated by brand names, Philips has a lower profile than ever, especially in the US. Instead, the group has attempted to restructure for growth by slimming down to its core businesses, eliminating traditional consumer electronics altogether, and repositioning as a health technology specialist with a range of products from domestic personal care devices up to professional diagnostic imaging appliances and "connected care" services for hospitals such as patient monitoring and management. It is among the global leaders in Ultrasound and diagnostic imaging systems, and was a leading provider of ventilators and respiratory management systems during the Covid pandemic. It has continued to expand this business with acquisitions such as remote cardiac diagnostics provider BioTelemetry and patient monitoring & surveillance developer CapsuleTech, both added in 2021. A handful of well-known sub-brands continue to exist in the personal health division such as Philishave shavers, Sonicare electric toothbrushes and Avent baby monitors, feeding bottles, breast pumps and other such products. Domestic appliances include kitchen blenders, coffee machines and other small household devices. Few of these qualify as essential household items, and in 2020, Philips confirmed a strategic review of the latter division with a view to its possible sale. A deal was concluded in 2021 with private equity firm Hillhouse Capital, which agreed to acquire Philips Domestic Appliances for €3.7bn. That's the latest of several such withdrawals. In 2015, the group began the process of demerging its substantial lighting division as separate company, rebranded in 2017 as Signify. Philips' revenues for 2020 were €19.5bn, virtually unchanged on the year before, but down from almost €38bn in 2000. Net income was €1.2bn. Diagnostics and medical treatment devices accounted for around 42% of revenues, connected care and personal health each for 28%. The remaining sum was generated by royalty income on sales of licensed products.
Capsule checked 2nd July 2021
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Who are the competitors of Philips? Its main competitors in healthcare solutions are Medtronic, General Electric and Siemens. Competitors in personal care devices include Procter & Gamble and SEB. See Consumer Appliances Sector Index for other companies
Historical profile information for Philips
Marketer Moves 17th Aug 2022: New CEO at Philips. See Marketer Moves (members only).
Adbrands Weekly Update 25th Sept 2014: The slow and steady dismantling of what was once one of the world's leading electronics groups continued. Dutch group Philips announced plans to combine its healthcare and remaining consumer electronics businesses and spin off lighting as an independent company, probably during 2016. It has already divested a string of other units over the past decade including semiconductors and TVs. At the same time, the group issued its second profit warning in three months. CEO Frans van Houten acknowledged that the group was facing similar problems to those already experienced by Nokia and other companies that failed to keep pace with the rapid changes within the technology environment.
Adbrands Weekly Update 21st Nov 2013: Dutch electronics group Philips has restored the shield background to its corporate banner, as well as the stars & radiowaves motif that has been largely absent from its identity since the end of the 1960s. Interbrand and Ogilvy collaborated on the project. As usual in such cases, all sorts of design philosophy has been quoted to justify the overhaul (and its price tag), such as the use of the mathematical "golden ratio" to position the elements of the new logo. Most observers, however, will see it as only a modest and retro-style refresh of the earlier design.
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