Samsung want to give up plasma expansion LCD TV LCD TV

"In the first half of this year Samsung does not yield PDP (plasma) plan, the year 2006 will be the expansion of PDP, it is also difficult to determine." February 8th, Samsung digital media business executives to convey such information to the market through the Korean media.

So far, the market for Samsung SDI before the end of 2006, PDP monthly production increased from the existing 300 thousand to 350 thousand, is expected in 2007 to upgrade to the rumors of the 500 thousand pieces were crushed.

On the contrary, the other two giants PDP LG electronics, Panasonic, are in the near future to expand the PDP module capacity. Panasonic has been in Japan Amagasaki new factory, plans before the end of 2006 to 425 thousand PDP per month will increase the level of LG; also recently clear plan, plan in 2006 to PDP template monthly production increased from the current 310 thousand to 550 thousand.

According to market research firm iSuppli predicts that in 2006 the total demand for PDP TV can be increased from 7 million units last year to more than 11 million units. Faced with the huge market demand for PDP modules, Samsung's conservative behavior in the PDP business intriguing.

Switch LCD camp?

Samsung's move is to try to avoid the conflict between PDP and its TFT-LCD panel shipments, Samsung in the large size of the tablet business is clearly standing on the LCD camp." Hitachi (Fujian) Co., a senior digital media bluntly.

According to him, Samsung this year alone will invest in the construction of the second generation of TFT-LCD plant, and SONY joint venture of the eight generation plant project is also actively promoting the. He estimated that due to Samsung's seventh generation TFT-LCD production line has been ahead of production, the main 40 inches above the size and panel, with Samsung in 2006 seven generation line will output 1 million substrates, each piece can be cut 8 pieces of 40 inch panel, yield an average of 70% inches, 40 of the total shipments 50%, Samsung this 2006 the production line of 40 inch panel output can reach 260-280 million, "because of the PDP current market demand is still to 42 inch products, its PDP and LCD products in order to avoid conflict with each other, Samsung must compress the PDP capacity".

The Hitachi executives also said, because of Samsung SDI is currently the main customers are Samsung, PHILPS, Samsung SDI, an annual output of 3 million PDP calculation, in 2006 is expected to be available to the Samsung 170-200, PHILPS 80-100 000 million tablets, "its production capacity sufficient to meet the two major customers, which is probably why Samsung is not eager to expand PDP capacity".

Samsung such benchmarking companies choose to slow down the PDP and accelerate investment in LCD, to a certain extent indicates the future of the industry development." China Video Industry Association Secretary General Bai Weimin introduction, in 2005 plasma TV and LCD TV is basically the market structure of 3:7. Not long ago, a survey of the China Consumer Association also showed that in 2006 the value of flat-panel TVs in the crowd of 80% of consumers want to buy LCD TV, only about 20% of consumers optimistic about plasma tv.

Although the color TV companies in the two kinds of liquid crystal and plasma products and technology continue to swing, but the final selection of the strategic direction of the flat panel LCD business still occupy the majority." White people think, with higher generation TFT-LCD production line put into production, 40 inches and above the larger size of the panel cutting is becoming more and more economic future, PDP can stick to the large size of the tablet market will be more and more small.

In fact, since the beginning of the second quarter of 2005, Samsung SDI PDP career that is caught in a loss. January 19th, Samsung SDI announcement is expected in the first quarter of this year, PDP price decline will be reduced to 1%-2%, the second quarter is expected to turn into a loss, and estimates this year's PDP shipments will rise by 48%. In Europe and the United States, PDP has been in a dominant position in the market, South Korea PDP is also a monopoly of more than 40 inches of the TV market. But LCD is also really through the increase in production and lower prices, the rapid erosion of large flat panel TV market." Samsung China TV products sales department a middle manager, said, is not the case with Samsung SDI loss completely for the loss, but it is most used for capital expenditure, with the expansion of market demand, and enter the capital harvest period, PDP business profits will gradually recover. But at the same time, he also admitted that the Samsung SDI capacity expansion in the scale gradually behind the two competitors, the future of its influence in the field of PDP fear will gradually decline.

450 million U.S. dollars grab OLED opportunities

However, in the face of declining demand for CRT, PDP eroded by the LCD situation, Samsung has a more long-term investment plan. At the beginning of February, Samsung SDI officially announced that it will spend nearly $450 million to expand the AM (active matrix) OLED (OLED) production capacity, the new production line will be put into operation in 2007, the initial estimated annual output of up to 20 million, and in 2008 to 50 million.

The new plant site selected in the southern Seoul Cheonan, Samsung SDI said the main consideration is to increase the demand for mobile phone screen, and the future of active matrix OLED will become the mainstream mobile phone screen. At the same time, Samsung is also expected in the future will be a large number of consumer electronics manufacturers OLED organic screen, because organic screen thinner, more power saving, dynamic screen processing speed is better than LCD screen.

According to the U.S. research firm DisplaySearch estimates, global OLED sales of $450 million this year, in 2007 will reach $2 billion. It is expected this year, the global OLED market size will reach 84 million 700 thousand, representing an increase of 50% in 2005.

Samsung LCD division vice president Xi Junheng also recently said that the company's LCD department's goal is to maintain a dominant position in the field of LCD, and dominate in the field of large AM OLED. To this end, this year the company has plans to focus on the development of AM OLED, and to