THE EUROPEAN UNION is set to reclassify monitors which have DVI outputs as TVs, meaning that manufacturers will have to pay 14% tariffs on these so-called "video monitors". According to display analyst firm Meko, a change of emphasis in guidance supplied by the customs authorities has prompted the reclassification, and sent manufacturers and dealers gasping in disbelief.
Monitors that are classified as computer monitors don't attract the tariff. But the new guidance means that monitors which have expansion slots, ports, or internal space for adding video or DVI monitors will attract the tariff. Bob Raikes, senior analyst at Meko, said that a survey his firm had made of the top twenty manufacturers revealed that few appreciate the significance of the changes.
One problem, he said, is that there is no association of monitor manufacturers, meaning no one has a voice in the halls of €uroville to attempt to persuade the custom authorities of the madness of the move. So Meko has taken up the cudgels on the monitor makers' behalf, and has recruited a duty expert to advise on the best way to proceed, and is organising an urgent meeting.
He said that Samsung thinks the logic of the custom ruling is that there are DVD players that have VGA connectors for progressive scan outputs, so the duty should also apply to analogue PC monitors.
News source: The Inq
