Buyers Alert: Videocon, LG don’t want you to buy their products online

This may not be the best thing to read in the morning but it surely is important for you! Some consumer durable majors will not offer warranty on their products that are sold online in their bid to boost the offline sale of their products.

Electronics giants such as Videocon and LG India sell their televisions, refrigerators, microwave ovens, washing machines and airconditioners online and have said that consumers who buy their products online will have to pay for after sale services even during the warranty period.

According to an ET report, the offline distributers’ network has demanded a complete shutdown of online sales in the current fiscal year. Companies are bound to oblige as their physical dealers largely generate sale for them. At present, online sales contribute less than 5% of their sales. However, smartphones are an exception as they generate 20% of the overall sales for these companies.

Nevertheless, taking note of the growing importance of eCommerce sector in the country, White goods maker LG India is planning to exclusively tie-up with ecommerce companies for the sale of their smartphone portfolio.

The report has also suggested that LG India has already issued an advisory to the consumers that the company will not offer any guarantee on the originality, suitability, update technology and after-sale services for the products, if they have been bought online except their own e-store.

On being questioned about the impact such a move would have on the sales, Nildari Dutta , corporate marketing head for LG India said that Indian consumers still believed in the touch and feel concept as consumer durable products are big purchases.

"The industry has been trying to come to terms with e-commerce by offering exclusive models, but still some sites like Snapdeal are trying to disrupt the market dynamics by undercutting prices and not following business terms," said Videocon chief operating officer CM Singh in the report. Other consumer goods majors such as Daikin India, Haier too have asked consumers to opt for offline sale of their products.