TV screens show the global hit video game “Black Myth: Wukong” at the Hisense booth during the IFA Berlin 2024 on September 6, 2024 in Berlin, Germany.
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BEIJING – Chinese home appliance company Hisense The goal is to become the No. 1 seller of television sets in the U.S. within about two years, Catherine Fang, president of Hisense International, told CNBC in an exclusive interview Monday.
In an effort to boost its brand in the US, the company last week became the first official partner of the FIFA Club World Cup, which kicks off in Miami in June 2025. FIFA President Gianni Infantino, FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström and Hisense Group President Jia Shaoqian attended an event in Shanghai on Oct. 30 to mark the partnership.
“We hope that through this sponsorship we can increase our market share,” Fang said in Mandarin, as translated by CNBC. Sporting events can strengthen Hisense’s image as a premium brand, she added.
The company’s latest TVs use an internal artificial intelligence chip to improve picture display, Fang said, noting plans to increase the use of AI to improve audio quality, or provide athlete statistics through voice commands. The company could not immediately share the extent to which these features were available on TV sets in the US
Hisense’s 55-inch U8 TV series starts at around $700 in the US, while the 100-inch version costs around $3,000 or more.
According to research firm Counterpoint, the company shipped the second-highest number of television sets in North America in the second quarter, behind Samsung.
“Hisense and TCL, which have been focusing on regular LCD TVs, are looking to increase their market share by strengthening their advanced TV portfolios such as QD-LCD and Mini LED LCD,” Counterpoint said.
Hisense also sells household appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines, also known as white goods.
Fang said the company aims to also become the largest Chinese brand of such white goods products in North America in about the next two years.
While China-based companies have relatively recently turned their attention to overseas markets as growth at home slows, Hisense has built its global business over decades.
Hisense generates half of its revenue outside China, while North America accounts for about 30% of its overseas sales, Fang said.