More Companies Entering OLED TV Market
As Chinese and U.S. TV makers are moving to enter the OLED TV market next year, LG Display is expected to benefit from it as the company is currently the sole producer of OLED panels.
Vizio, a U.S. TV producer, and Xiaomi of China will adopt OLED panels next year. OLED panel demand is expected to soar as the two companies, which have been focusing on small and medium-sized TV models, will enter the premium TV market.
LG Display will benefit fully from this change as it has been exclusively supplying OLED panels since 2013. The OLED panel industry has a high technological entry barrier so it will take at least three years for LG Display’s competitors to reach the volume production stage.
The “OLED Group,” which refers to the group of OLED TV producers, is expanding. Currently, the group consists of 15 members, including Sony, Toshiba and Panasonic of Japan and Skyworks, Konka and HiSense of China, as well as LG Electronics. The number of members will rise to 17 next year. Samsung Display also plans to mass-produce QD displays based on OLED technology beginning 2021.
As the OLED TV market expands, OLED panel orders from TV manufacturers are also on the rise. Market research firm IHS Markit predicted that OLED TV sales will surpass 3 million units this year, 5 million units next year and 10 million units by 2023.
In fact, OLED panel supply is falling short of demand. "I understand that LG Display cannot meet orders from corporate customers, so the company has to allocate a certain quantity to each of them," a display industry official said.