[Wall Street Journal]

For the first time, the average price of a 47-inch flat-panel television is less than $1,000, good news for consumers but the latest sign of tough times for the TV industry.

The psychologically important sub-$1,000 mark—based on a forecast by market researcher NPD DisplaySearch—signals larger screen sizes are becoming affordable to more Americans as a glut of sets and components erodes prices.

…

TV makers have introduced new technologies—such as LED backlights, higher frame rates and 3-D—to bolster demand, but price-sensitive consumers, especially in North America, seem reluctant to pay higher costs for premium features, NPD DisplaySearch said.

In many cases, consumers are opting to trade up in size, rather than features, for a similar amount of money, DisplaySearch said.

Overall, 2.4 million 3-D units were sold in North America, making up 8% of units. The premium for the feature on an average 55-inch set has dropped to about 17% from 33% in the third quarter of 2011, but its adoption is still slower than anticipated. LED backlights carry premiums of 25% to 30%.

Read the full story here: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203479104577124932742565596.html?KEYWORDS=lcd+tv+prices