Shipments of LCD TV sets worldwide for 2016 are estimated to grow by 1.9% annually to around 220 million units, according to the latest analysis by WitsView, a division of TrendForce. At the start of 2017, the U.S. consumer market will be bumpy in the short term due to the results of the country’s presidential election. If the U.S. Federal Reserve decides to raise the key interest rates next year, domestic consumer spending will recover and the country will again play a major role in sustaining global TV sales. WitsView forecasts that global TV shipments for 2017 will reach 225 million units, up 2.5% compared with the prior year.
Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (abbreviation QCT, here referred to as Qualcomm) tops the projected ranking of the top 10 fabless IC design houses worldwide based on annual revenues for 2016, according to TrendForce’s analysis. Broadcom Limited is expected to be runner-up, while MediaTek will take third place. The ranking positions of these three companies are fairly secure in the short term because collectively they would represent about 65% of the total revenue generated all the design houses that are listed on this year’s top 10 ranking.
