The LCD display market is growing despite weak demand in the US, according to research body DisplaySearch.
According to DisplaySearch’s “Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report” Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report, total television shipments in 2010 will reach more than 243 million units, a 16 per cent increase from 2009. The organisation expects LCD TV shipments to grow to 188 million units worldwide, up from 145 million units in 2009, pinpointing strong growth in Japan, Europe, and emerging markets like China as regions driving the growth.
“North America LCD TV sales have been weak in 2010 so far, falling 3 per cent year on year on a unit basis during the first half of the year,” noted Paul Gagnon, director of North America TV Research for DisplaySearch.
LCD remains the dominant TV technology worldwide, accounting for at least half of all TV shipments in nearly every region.
At the same time, LCD TV street prices are expected to start falling more vigorously in the last quarter of 2010. DisplaySearch said this will be particularly notable for LED-backlit LCD TVs as an oversupply of LCD TV panels resulted in falling panel costs during the third quarter of 2010.
The research company projects that average LED LCD TV prices will fall at twice the rate of CCFL LCD TV prices during the last quarter of 2010. This should cause an improvement in growth rate, particularly for North America.
DisplaySearch expects LED LCD TVs to account for the majority of LCD TV shipments in 2011, as the cost premium reduces quickly and manufacturers continue to transition their LCD TV lineups away from older CCFL technology. More than 50 per cent of LCD TV shipments will be based on LED backlight technology in 2011, up from 20 per cent in 2010.
Demand for plasma TV continues to be robust, as LCD TV price declines have slowed while plasma TV has maintained similar rates of price erosion. The result is that plasma TV shipments are now expected to approach 18 million units in 2010, a 25 per cent increase from 2009, even though shipments actually declined year on year.
According to Hisakazu Torii, DisplaySearch vice president of TV Research: “Because of the very strong pricing advantage of large screen sizes and large improvements in power consumption and thinness, plasma TV continues to be a key display technology in the TV category, especially among a base of fans that favour this technology for picture quality and 3D performance.”