(Yicai Global) Aug. 26 -- TCL Electronics Holdings is to invest in both its upstream component suppliers and downstream partners in the second half to strengthen its industrial ecology and promote the artificial intelligence plus Internet of Things connectivity of its devices, the Chinese TV maker’s chief executive officer said today.

This will include minority equity investments as well as mergers and acquisitions, as the firm takes advantage of adjustments in the upstream panel industry and the rapid development of fifth-generation network technology, Wang Cheng told Yicai Global during the firm’s semi-annual financial results press conference.

Hong Kong-based TCL will focus on TVs and mobile terminals to create a panoply of smart life scenarios for consumers. It plans to connect different smart appliances using 5G, AI and IOT technologies. The firm recently rolled out an 8K TV that can connect 16 smart devices through 5G, Wang said.

The company’s net profit in the first half was down 6.95 percent from a year earlier to HKD455 million (USD58.7 million), according to the earnings report. It had revenue of HKD17.3 billion (USD2.2 billion), not including TVs made to order for another brand, down 3 percent from a year earlier.

However, second quarter results showed that the TV maker is well on its way to recovering from the fallout from the novel coronavirus. The firm’s net profit more than doubled in the second quarter year on year reaching HKD424 million (USD54.7 million), thirteen times more than what it achieved in the first quarter. Revenue was up 36.6 percent year on year and 46.8 percent quarter on quarter to HKD10.3 billion, the firm said.

It sold 5.81 million TV sets in the second quarter, up 31.6 percent from a year earlier despite global TV sales dropping 4.9 percent over the same period, it added. This boosted TCL’s TV set market share to 12.7 percent in the second quarter from 9.4 percent in the same period last year, to rank second worldwide, according to British market research firm Omdia.

TCL’s new Mexican and Vietnamese plants have recently started production, helping to boost the company’s annual TV production capacity to 27 million units, Wang said.

TCL will only manufacture its own brand of TV sets from Sept. 1. It expects to have wrapped up the acquisition of the smartphones business from parent firm TCL Industries Holdings by the end of this month.

TCL’s stock price [HKG:1070] plunged 7.04 percent today to close at HKD5.81 (USD0.84).

Editors: Tang Shihua, Kim Taylor