Triggering Another Chicken Game

BOE will lower the prices of its 65-inch LCD panels by 20% to drive out Samsung Display and LG Display from the panel market.
BOE will lower the prices of its 65-inch LCD panels by 20% to drive out Samsung Display and LG Display from the panel market.

China’s BOE has initiated a price war in the global LCD market. The world's largest LCD maker said it would sell 65-inch LCD TV panels nearly at cost. Analysts say that BOE has set off an LCD chicken game in 10 years to take the premium market away from Korean companies.

The news put the Korean display industry on alert. "BOE informed TV companies that it would lower prices of its 65-inch panels by 20%," said a senior executive of a Korean display producer on June 26. “BOE started mass production of 10.5th-generation panels in the first quarter of this year. It seems to be determined to drive out Samsung Display and LG Display from the panel market.”

Currently, the prices of 65-inch LCD panels range from US$240 to US$250. Lowering prices by 20% means that BOE will sell products nearly at cost. This woud resume a chicken game in 10 years since 2008.

"Global TV makers are asking for further price cuts, citing the prices offered by BOE," said an official of a major LCD maker. “If this situation holds, BOE may sweep orders from minor TV companies, including Haier and TCL of China, in negotiations on tentative contracts for next year, which will be signed at the end of this year.”

Samsung Display led the market for 50-inch or larger panels with a market share of 21.7% in the first quarter, followed by LG Display with 18.8%. BOE came in sixth with a 7.6% market share.

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