It has also decided to enter the audio products market through multibrand dealer outlets, again in direct contrast to its earlier strategy to stick to exclusive Onkyo showrooms.

Onkyo director and head of the audio products division MA Dhandapani said the drop in prices was not related to any reversal in strategy. "The fall in the yen value made it possible for us to drop prices. We are just passing on the forex benefit to our customers," he said. However, while the company denies a change in the pricing strategy to gain numbers in the audio products market, it admits freely to a change in the distribution strategy. "Yes, we have decided to change our distribution strategy a little and go in for showcasing our products in some of the well-known multibrand showrooms," Dhandapani says.

And that's not all, climbing down from its portals as an `highly exclusive product for only those who appreciate good music the company has decided to get into the numbers game.' "We are looking at a low margin penetration strategy to popularise the brand," he says.

The company has got together franchisees in many major cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Chandigarh, Pune, Coimbatore, Bangalore and Ahmedabad. This is apart from the multibrand dealer outlets the company plans to rope in.But not all of Onkyo's products will be sold via the dealer channels. Only lower end models like Intech185 and amplifiers and tape decks will be available at the outlets while the exclusive showrooms will display the entire range including a hi-tech home theatre system which carries a tag of Rs 3 lakh. Onkyo has also tied up with direct marketing companies to sell its range.

According to Nazar Mohammad, a director with Silicon Valley Communications, which is the direct marketing partner for Onkyo in Chennai, the response so far has been good, given the recessionary trends in the market. Onkyo has been in India for three years and yet surprisingly has no significant brand presence in the audio products market. This is possibly due to the company's decision to sell its products only through its own showrooms, industry sources said. Till last year, Onkyo had showrooms only in Chennai and Bangalore.

The pricing was also pretty steep with the lower end models carrying a tag of Rs 24,000 (now slashed to Rs 19,500) and the high end models going up to Rs 3.5 lakh (home theatre systems).

The company had earlier scoffed at the price wars in the market and preferred to distance itself from the fray, relying instead on the `quality of sound' to sell its product line. But as our sources put it, the strategy obviously has come a cropper and hence the decision to change its marketing tune.The hitherto low profile company also plans a splash in the media next year, with print and visual campaigns. "Once we have our distribution network in place to ensure better availability of Onkyo systems, we will go on an advertising campaign for better brand visibility," is how Dhandapani puts it.