As 8K Grows in Popularity, LED Ultra-Fine Pitch Display Market to Reach 58% CAGR in 2019-2023, Says TrendForce

According to the latest report by the LEDinside research division of TrendForce, titled 2020 Global LED Video Wall Market Outlook – Meeting Room, Sales Channel and Price Trend, the demand for displays with high resolution and HDR capabilities has skyrocketed; thus, the LED fine pitch display (pixel pitch ≤ P2.5) market is expected to reach 27% CAGR in the 2019-2023 period. On the other hand, ultra-fine pitch displays have more momentum for growth because of their lower shipment numbers at the present. The ultra-fine pitch display (pixel pitch ≤ P1.1) market is therefore projected to reach 58% CAGR.

TrendForce indicates that the $2.6 billion LED fine pitch display market in 2019 registered a 31% growth YoY compared to 2018 figures. This rapid expansion of the market meant the corresponding growth of fine pitch display manufacturers’ revenues as well. In terms of revenue ranking, the top seven manufacturers have cornered 66% share of the total market, with Chinese manufacturers occupying the top six spots. With the increasing demand for 8K resolution, technical improvements, and lowered costs, LED video wall applications are expected to expand from single-use cases to commercial uses, such as cinemas, meeting rooms, home theaters, and even premium consumer markets. Consequently, the market for LED fine pitch displays is projected to grow exponentially as well.

LED ultra-fine pitch displays are changing the industry’s competitive landscape

P1.2~P1.6 display products are the largest revenue drivers in the global LED fine pitch display market. The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the impending popularity of 8K resolution serve as two major market drivers that pave the way for LED displays with even finer pixel pitches. In addition to existing leaders in the fine pitch display market, namely, Leyard and Unilumin Group, global players in the consumer electronics display market, such as Sony, Samsung, and LG, have now begun manufacturing fine pitch displays, with even finer (≤P1.0) pixel pitch display products. Some of these products include Mini LED and Micro LED displays.

TrendForce forecasts P1.2~P1.6 fine pitch and ≦P1.1 ultra-fine pitch displays to have the highest momentum for growth among all product segments. Aside from predominant manufacturers of LED fine pitch displays, the market is seeing new entrants in the form of LCD panel manufacturers, TV brands, projector makers, and even upstream component suppliers. For example, Taiwan-based LED chip manufacturer Epistar have partnered with LED video wall market leader Leyard in an attempt to reduce manufacturing costs of Mini LED and Micro LED displays through advancements in semi-mass transfer technology and mass transfer technology respectively. On the other hand, driver IC manufacturer Macroblock Inc. has successfully developed ultra-fine pitch Micro LED display modules through a joint technological effort with the Industrial Technology Research Institute. Since manufacturing ultra-fine pitch displays and LED video walls with high resolution, HDR, and even lower costs is currently a common goal of LED display manufacturers, we forecast an increasingly competitive landscape for the industry.

Notes:

1. The terms “fine pitch display” and “ultra-fine pitch display” are defined by the distance from the center of one pixel to the center of its adjacent pixel.
   • Fine pitch: pixel pitch ≤ 2.5mm
   • Ultra-fine pitch: pixel pitch ≤ 1.1mm
2. The terms “Mini LED display” and “Micro LED display” are define by the size of LED chips, which are mostly used in ultra-fine pitch displays because of the chips’ diminutive size.
   • Mini LED: chip size between 100-300µm
   • Micro LED: chip size ≤ 100µm