Sales of flat panel TVs are dropping, and will continue to drop in 2009.

LCD TV revenues will fall as much as 16 percent next year, which may lead to manufacturers cutting prices to help stimulate sales.

A new report issued by DisplaySearch indicates this will be the first television sales decline in at least 10 years, and the first revenue decline in almost nine years.

"DisplaySearch expects that 2009 will be the most difficult year yet for the TV industry and supply chain," DisplaySearch said in a statement.

Thirty-two inch HDTVs and smaller will see the sharpest sales drop off, as consumers shift towards larger televisions.  Markets in North America, Western Europe and Japan will be the hardest hit, though things should go back to normal in 2010 and beyond.

Plasma HDTV sales are expected to rise 24 percent in 2008, but the market will now grow very much more than that in 2009.  The market will grow just five percent in 2009 up to 14.6 million units, which has been negatively impacted due to the lower cost of 32" LCD TVs.

In 2009, the LCD TV market is expected to grow 17 percent up to 119.9 million units total, which is 11.5 million units shy of what was previously expected.