12 November 2010

LED TV panel demand to rise significantly in January/February

Demand for LED-backlit LCD TV panels will increase significantly in January–February 2011 as TV vendors are planning to launch new models in March, according to David Su, president of LED epitaxial wafer and chipmaker Lextar Electronics Corp of Hsinchu Science Park, Taiwan, a subsidiary of display panel maker AU Optronics (AUO).

In a report in Digitimes, Su indicated that, based on past experience, growth in demand will rise significantly when LED-backlit TV market share reaches 15–20%, and added that this should reach about 20% in 2010.

Based on product designs from vendors, most new models will be LED-backlit, Su notes. Market observers estimate that, due to falling demand in fourth-quarter 2010, average selling prices (ASPs) for LED-backlit products will drop by 11–15%. Su adds that LED price declines happen every quarter based on market demand, and demand in first-quarter 2011 is still unclear, so it is hard to estimate the decrease.

Due to expanding market demand in 2011, LED backlighting designs for LCD monitors and TVs will focus on reducing overall costs, and the tight LED and component supply is expected to ease in 2011 due to component suppliers' efforts to expand capacity as well as new backlight unit (BLU) designs.

The main designs of LED TV BLUs in first-quarter 2010 were edge-type (on the top and bottom of displays) and required about 144 LEDs for a 32-inch model, 192 LEDs for 37-inch, 208 LEDs for 42-inch, 240 LEDs for 46-inch, and 288 LEDs for 55-inch models. However, in first-quarter 2011 LED TV BLU designs will change to edge-type on the sides, so LED usage will drop to 100, 120, 144, 172 and 200 units, respectively. Also, some suppliers are developing single-side bottom edge-type designs, which can reduce the usage of LEDs down to 80 units for 32-inch models, 100 units for 37-inch models and 120 units for 42-inch models, the Digitimes report notes.

See related items:

LED-backlit panels to account for 30% of AUO's shipments for TVs in Q3

Tags: LED-backlit LCD TV panels

Visit: www.digitimes.com