[2021 테크기상도] ‘Corona Boom-up’ TV Market, Global Half of Samsung·LG… The gap in the new year widens

Input 2021.01.07 06:00

[신년기획] ③ TV
TV demand explosion suppressed by Corona 19
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, half of global sales
Launched mini LED TV… Estimated 13 million units this year
LG Rollable OLED-Samsung Micro LED TV Showdown
US, China’s “security threat” may sanction TCL

The global TV market, which had shrunk in the first half of the year due to the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), boomed in the second half of last year with the effect of “pent-up”. Samsung Electronics (005930)·LG Electronics (066570)Etc., Korean companies achieved the highest level of performance ever, accounting for half of the global market share (based on sales).

In the new year, domestic companies are planning to further solidify their global leadership positions. Key words include premium products such as mini LED (light-emitting diode) TV, OLED (organic light-emitting diode) TV, and micro LED TV. Mini LED is a transitional product that is going to the next generation display, and premium TV is attracting attention because it raises sales. It is also seen as a weapon to widen the gap with Chinese companies that are pursuing Korean companies.

TCL is the most threatening among Chinese companies, but recently there has been public talk that US sanctions are imminent. The U.S. authorities believe that the network devices and semiconductors installed on the TV pose a serious threat to the leakage of personal information. TCL, which once pushed out LG Electronics in terms of shipments and rose to the second place in the global market, suffered a decline in its fourth quarter last year, and this year is in danger of losing more than a third of its sales in the US market. It is expected to be a boon for Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics.

◇ TV market booming… This year, a new mini-LED TV is clashed

The global TV market, which was expected to boom due to the effects of large sports events such as the Tokyo Olympics and Euro 2020 last year, faced a frost in the aftermath of Corona 19. As countries around the world have taken a shutdown (suspended) measure to prevent the spread of the corona, large offline stores that have been in charge of sales have been closed. As a result, when looking at the global TV market in the first half of last year, shipments decreased by 7.7% and sales by 17.8% compared to the previous year.

However, in the second half of the year, a reversal took place. Although the Corona 19 crisis continued, TV makers turned to online distribution, and the pent-up effect was combined, setting a chance for a rebound. According to market research firm Omni, global TV shipments in the third quarter of last year were 62.87 million units, a record high in the third quarter. It was up 14.7% from the same period last year, more than 10 percentage points higher than the original forecast. In the third quarter, sales were $28.135 billion (about 30.63 trillion won), up 11.8% from the previous year.

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics stood out in the market. Samsung Electronics’ market share in the third quarter of last year, based on sales, set a record at 33.1%, and LG Electronics also recorded 16.6% market share, beating Sony (10.1%) and TCL (7.3%). The global sales share of Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics is 49.7%, which is close to half. In the fourth quarter of last year, it is estimated that the increase was continued due to the North American Black Friday and the Chinese Gwanggun Festival.

The market share of the two companies based on shipments was 35.3% (Samsung Electronics 23.6%, LG Electronics 11.6%) in the third quarter of last year, outpacing 33.8% made in China by 1.5 percentage points. In the previous quarter, Chinese-made (38%) and Korean-made (28.8%) were in contrast.

As the aftermath of Corona 19 is still continuing, the outlook for this year is uncertain, but the industry is trying to find a way out with mini LED TVs, etc. The mini-LED TV is a backlight of the existing LCD (liquid crystal display) TV, and is characterized by employing an LED that is a tenth smaller than the existing LED. Because LEDs are denser in the same area, they produce brighter and clearer picture quality.

Samsung Electronics plans to set the mini LED TV as the best in the QLED (QD-LCD) product line and apply a premium strategy. LG Electronics puts mini-LED TVs under OLED, a premium product line, but plans to announce that it is the most advanced technology for LCD TVs.

China’s TCL and BOE also participated in this market, and this year’s mini LED TV market is estimated at 13 million units. This is more than doubled compared to 6.4 million units last year.

◇ LG accelerates OLED with’Two-Two TV’… Samsung unveiled a micro LED TV

In addition to mini-LEDs, OLED TVs, which are considered as next-generation displays, are expected to take full-fledged drive.

The OLED TV market, which was 3.54 million units (estimated) last year, is expected to increase to 6.7 million units next year. This market is the sole stage of LG Electronics. It is expected that 19 companies last year and 20 companies this year will each release OLED TVs, with LG Electronics’ share of 57.2%. Moreover, since LG Display is the only company that can produce OLED for TVs, synergy within the group is also significant.

LG Electronics plans to target the premium market with rollable TVs as the OLED market opens in earnest. It has already introduced a 65-inch rollable OLED TV (Signature All Red R), and rollable TVs of various sizes are expected to be released in the future. OLED TVs do not need a backlight because each element employs an OLED panel that emits light by itself. Thanks to this, TVs of various form factors (shapes) such as rolling or bending are possible.

Samsung Electronics responds with a micro LED TV. Recently, it has unveiled a 110-inch micro LED TV worth 170 million won and is making advance reservations. Full-scale shipment is after March. MicroLED is a TV that uses LEDs of much smaller size (100㎛·micrometer) than mini LEDs. Since it emits light by itself, it does not need a backlight, and it is not an organic compound device such as OLED, so there is less burn-in phenomenon. It is durable. It is relatively free in resolution and panel/bezel thickness.

This year’s mass production of QD-LED, which is called true QLED, is also key. Samsung Electronics, which needs to receive the growth of the OLED TV market through mini LEDs and micro LEDs, needs QD-LED, the opposite concept of OLED. Samsung Display is expected to mass-produce QD-LED for notebooks after pilot production this year. Depending on the speed of development, there are observations that the day to see QD-LED for TV is not too long.

◇ US sanctions on TCL in China are imminent… Good news for Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics

The US Department of Homeland Security said it is reviewing sanctions, saying that there is a high possibility of leaking personal information due to a backdoor installed on TVs produced by China’s TCL recently.

TCL is a TV manufacturer that produces 20 million units per year, and is the second largest global company in terms of shipments, including OEMs, which are ahead of LG Electronics. It is growing at 15% annually, mainly in the US and Asia. It also acquired Maojia International in China for the development of mini LED and micro LED TVs.

If U.S. sanctions become a reality, TCL will lose sight of the U.S. market, which accounted for 37% of total sales in 2019. Conversely, Korean companies are highly likely to benefit from mid-priced products that compete with TCL. TCL’s sales share by price range in the US is 28% for mid-priced products of $400-750 and 67% for low-priced products under $300.

“If TCL is subject to sanctions,” said Roh Gyeong-tak, a researcher at Eugene Investment & Securities. “If TCL is subject to sanctions, it is necessary to obtain permission from the US government to do business with US companies.” . Researcher Roh said, “Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are expected to reap profits in mid-priced products.”