China's OLED Market Rise: Overtaking Korea, a Promising Future?

China's OLED Market Rise: Overtaking Korea, a Promising Future?According to a recent report by CINNOResearch, China is projected to become the world's leading player in the OLED market this year, measured by area, marking a significant advancement in China's display technology prowess and signifying its potential to surpass Korea as the new leader. Sally Chen, CEO of CINNOResearch, delivered a keynote speech at the recent DisplayBusinessForum2024, stating that China will take the top spot in the overall OLED market share by area this year

China's OLED Market Rise: Overtaking Korea, a Promising Future?

According to a recent report by CINNOResearch, China is projected to become the world's leading player in the OLED market this year, measured by area, marking a significant advancement in China's display technology prowess and signifying its potential to surpass Korea as the new leader.

Sally Chen, CEO of CINNOResearch, delivered a keynote speech at the recent DisplayBusinessForum2024, stating that China will take the top spot in the overall OLED market share by area this year. Notably, in the smartphone OLED panel segment, Chinese manufacturers already achieved a 51% share in the first quarter of this year, surpassing Korea for the first time and expected to maintain their lead.

Chen pointed out that Chinese panel makers possess strong capabilities in display design and technologies like Tandem OLED. Currently, BOE and Visionox are investing in large-size OLEDs, while Tianma and TCL CSOT are also exploring similar investments.

However, despite the strong momentum in the OLED market, China faces several challenges. Market research firm Omdia data indicates that Chinese panel makers held a 49.7% share in the overall OLED market (by shipment) in the first quarter, while Korea held a 49% share. While profitability remains a challenge for Chinese players in the short term, Yoshio Tamura, co-founder of DSCC, noted that Chinese OLED manufacturers are expected to incur losses of 20%-30%. Nevertheless, OLED investments are anticipated to continue, driven by government subsidies.

It's noteworthy that despite China's significant strides in OLED, a significant revenue gap still exists compared to Korea. According to Chen, Samsung Display topped the list of panel manufacturers in terms of revenue last year, with the combined revenue of the top three Chinese manufacturers equaling only 10% of Samsung's. This highlights the need for Chinese panel makers to further enhance their scale effect and brand influence.

Overall, China's OLED market exhibits robust growth potential, but achieving a true dominance over Korea requires addressing profitability challenges and enhancing brand influence. In the future, Chinese panel makers need to continuously increase R&D investment, elevate their technological capabilities, and actively target the high-end market to truly claim the OLED throne.