Are You Ready for Some HDTV?

Feb. 3, 2006 — -- If you subscribe to your local newspaper, you may want to clear out your recycling bins and prepare to be flooded with ads for big-screen TVs this weekend. It's time for the Super Bowl, and the NFL's final game of the season has become an entertainment spectacle and a chance for retailers to push their plasma- and LCD-screen wonders.

The event is expected to draw more than 130 million viewers in the United States alone, and ABC Sports' high definition broadcast of Super Bowl XL will be available to anyone with a HDTV.

For those selling TVs, "XL" may mean extra large profits. Many manufacturers debut new sets in the fall, when the football season starts, and introduce savings and more aggressive advertising during the playoffs and Super Bowl.

"Retailers and manufacturers look to take advantage of the excitement around these big events," explained Rick Souder, executive vice president of merchandising for online retailer Crutchfield, and a 30-year veteran of the consumer electronics business. "What's the old expression? Shoot while the ducks are flying."

After 22 years of living in their Hampton, Va., home, David Tengquist and his wife, Annette, decided to turn their garage into a party room and host a Super Bowl party. Tengquist has been working on the project for months and is expecting deliveries of lighting and speakers right up to the last moment.

"My wife bought me a welcome mat, and it says, 'My World, My Universe, My Garage," he said with pride. "And the neighbors have heard the work being done in here, but they will not see the room until it is ready for unveiling this Sunday."

The centerpiece of the room is already in place. It is a $1,700 Westinghouse 37-inch HDTV that he bought last week from Crutchfield because he was interested in the TV's advanced resolution features.

Tengquist bought his first HDTV two years ago at a Circuit City. Now, five of his six TVs are HDTVs.

"Anyone who has seen the picture knows they want one. ... The detail is really impressive," he said.