The latest analysis of the panel market by WitsView, a division of TrendForce, finds that low prices and technological maturation have substantially widened the adoption of LTPS panels among smartphone makers. The share of devices featuring LTPS panels in the global smartphone market is projected to grow from 37.6% in 2018 to 41.6% in 2019. However, panel suppliers have ended large-scale expansions of their production capacity for LTPS panels since they are gradually shifting their technological focus for smartphone displays to AMOLED. On the whole, 2019 is expected to be a year during which the market for LTPS panels will be at its healthiest state in terms of supply and demand.
According to the latest report of WitsView, a division of TrendForce, global shipments of branded TV sets for 2018 totaled 219 million units, an increase of 4.1% compared with prior year, indicating a recovery from weak TV demand in 2017. Looking ahead to 2019, global branded TV shipments are expected to reach 223 million units, an increase of 1.6%
LCD panel makers have continued to bring new production capacities to the market, and the increasing pressure from oversupply has resulted in a sharp decline in panel prices, according to the latest report by WitsView, a division of TrendForce. Therefore, Samsung Display has strategically decided to allocate more capacity to QD-OLED TV production in advance. As the result, the stock-up demand for TV panels may arrive earlier than expected in 2Q19.
Development of 5G products and network has been ongoing in the past years. And the commercialization of 5G is expected to roll out in 2019, with 5G telecom services to be planned in the United States, South Korea, Japan, and China, etc. The arrival of 5G smartphones will also be in the spotlight this year. According to TrendForce’s latest report, Android smartphone brands, such as Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, Vivo, and One Plus, all have a chance to launch 5G smartphones in 2019. However, the production volume of 5G models would only be 5 million units this year, a penetration rate of 0.4%, since the construction of 5G related infrastructure has not been fully completed.
According to the latest report by WitsView, a division of TrendForce, increasing penetration of UHD display panels has driven the consumption of driver IC in the past few years. The total consumption grew by 8.4% YoY in 2018, but the growth would slow down to 3% this year due to technology variation in designs of large-size panels and falling shipments of small-size panels.