TV shipments continued to show a strong rebound in growth rates from the very weak levels of early 2009 as improving global economic conditions led to greater demand for TVs. According to the latest TV shipment data from the DisplaySearch Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report, total TV shipments increased 25% Y/Y in Q1’10 to 55M units, while LCD TV shipments showed a 50% Y/Y improvement to more than 40M units, very close to expected levels. Other TV technologies showed strong results as well, with plasma TV shipments surging 21% Y/Y to 3.4M units. CRT TVs, which had been averaging 40% Y/Y shipment declines during most of 2009, had a only a 21% decline in unit shipments, with emerging market demand for TVs ahead of the 2010 World Cup soccer tournament injecting life into the fading technology.
Even mature flat panel TV markets had strong results in Q1’10. Japan, which completed the transition from CRT to flat panel TVs several years ago, enjoyed a 93% Y/Y increase in LCD TV shipments and a 38% increase in plasma TV shipments as a government sponsored stimulus program, the green Eco-Points initiative, is nearing its expiration, spurring consumers to upgrade. In Europe, the upcoming World Cup and digital TV transition in several countries drove a 33% Y/Y increase in TV shipments during Q1’10 as brands and retailers prepared for the increased level of demand.
“Not all regions saw such strong growth though, as North America TV shipments increased just 1% Y/Y, although demand certainly seems to have been stronger than supply during Q1,” noted Paul Gagnon, Director of North America TV Market Research for DisplaySearch. “As TV brands faced a tight supply situation, it seems that brands made some tough choices on where to allocate product, opting for more profitable regions like Europe and Japan where competition and margin pressure isn’t as intense.”
|
Technology |
Q1’10 Units |
Q1’10 Unit Share |
Q/Q Growth |
Y/Y Growth |
|
LCD TV |
40,595 |
74.1% |
-20% |
50% |
|
PDP TV |
3,390 |
6.2% |
-28% |
21% |
|
OLED TV |
0.1 |
0.0% |
-73% |
-84% |
|
CRT TV |
10,750 |
19.6% |
-12% |
-22% |
|
RPTV |
41 |
0.1% |
-20% |
-38% |
|
Total |
54,777 |
100% |
-19% |
25% |
Source: DisplaySearch Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report
LED Backlights Account for 8% of LCD TV Units Shipped in Q1’10 and More Than 17% of Revenues
As TV brands aggressively transition their lineups away from CCFL backlights to LED backlights in an effort to increase average prices and profits, most are facing an immature LED supply chain struggling to keep up. As a result, supply shortages are keeping key component prices high, along with the market premium of LED-backlit sets over CCFL-backlit counterparts. Even so, the share of LCD TV shipments with LED backlights nearly doubled from 4% in Q4’09 to nearly 8% in Q1’10, the vast majority of which were edge-lit models. Penetration of LED backlights in LCD TV shipments was highest at larger screen sizes, with LED share at more than 35% of 50”+ in Q1’10, compared to less than 4% below 40”.
Samsung Leads Global Brands with Top Unit and Revenue Share in Q1’10
Samsung’s global TV market share pulled back from record levels reached in Q4’09, but still led all other brands by a healthy margin, at 21.9% of global TV revenues in Q1’10 (Table 2). Samsung continues to be aggressive in taking leadership positions for new technologies, such as LED in 2009 and 3D in 2010. Such actions have led to strong unit growth and high average selling prices. Samsung was the #1 brand in LCD TV and #2 in plasma TV.
LGE was the #2 brand worldwide in TV shipment revenues, increasing their share to 14.8%, a record result for the brand. LGE also had the best Y/Y revenue growth among the top five brands with strong share expansion in nearly every region, aside from Eastern Europe and Japan, where the brand doesn’t participate.
Sony rounded out the top three brands in global TV revenues during Q1’10, declining in share to just under 10% after a strong surge in growth during Q4’09. Sony’s 34% Q/Q decline in revenues also led the top five brands and was the only brand among the top five with a Y/Y decline in TV revenues. Panasonic and Sharp rounded out the top five global TV brands, on a revenue basis.
|
Rank |
Brand |
Q4’09 Share |
Q1’10 Share |
Q/Q Growth |
Y/Y Growth |
|
1 |
Samsung |
23.7% |
21.9% |
-26% |
18% |
|
2 |
LGE |
13.0% |
14.8% |
-9% |
29% |
|
3 |
Sony |
11.5% |
9.6% |
-34% |
-15% |
|
4 |
Panasonic |
7.9% |
6.7% |
-32% |
28% |
|
5 |
Sharp |
5.4% |
6.3% |
-7% |
1% |
|
|
Other |
41.7% |
41.4 |
-18% |
17% |
|
|
Total |
100.0% |
100.0% |
-20% |
15% |
Source: DisplaySearch Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report
