China aims at newer key dispaly technologies for R&D after becoming the largest manufacturer

By Lin Meibing, JW Insights Correspondent

After having won the world's largest display manufacturing capacity in the last three to four years, China aims at next-generation key display technologies for research and development. 

The recently issued guidelines on 18 key R&D projects by the High Tech Department of the Ministry of Science and Technology include several items on the cutting edge display technologies. They evaporated OLED, printed OLED/QLED, Micro LED, LCoS, light field display, and electroluminescence display. Industry observers commented that if China could acquire these technologies and achieve their industrialization,  the country would likely surpass other competitors and lead the display technology world.

According to the statistics by COEMA(China Optics & Optoelectronics Manufacturers Association), the global display industry revenues reached $217.3 billion in 2020. The product shipments reached 254 million square meters, an increase of 36.5% from 2016. The rapid development is attributed to the continued expansion of the Chinese market and Chinese display panel manufacturers' contributions. 

The China mainland has been a catch-up player in the display industry. In 2016, the global market share of display panel manufacturing capacity was held by South Korea, Taiwan, and China's mainland for around 30% each. Last year China's share jumped to 55%, and its sales revenue share increased by 45%, making it the world's largest panel display manufacturing site, especially for LCD.  The country's progress is also noticeable in the OLED, Micro LED, and laser-display fields, thanks to its vast market size and the industry's continuous investment. 

In the face of the China mainland's fast progress, other global players are adjusting themselves. Some Japanese LCD panel makers are either loss-making or seeking divestment. The panel makers in China's Taiwan are keen on transformation. 

While South Korea intends to withdraw from the LCD and accelerate the OLED sector, it remains the strongest competitor to China. China's gap with it is still significant, especially in the OLED field, and it will take some time for the Chinese manufacturers to catch up.  

Meanwhile, the Chinese TV manufacturers are staying head to head with Korean brands Samsung and LG in new display technology fields. They have invested in large production lines of flexible OLED, but demands and applications for it are still weak and fewer. 

Mini LED is another latest competition frontline. This technology enables more brightness with a higher contrast ratio than traditional LED and other more efficient features.  Most of the global TV brands in Japan, Korea, and China are in the middle of adapting it to their TV product lines. In 2020, the global sales of Mini LED TV sets were only 200,000, but the figure expects to jump to 3.4 million this year, and 35.5 million in 2025, according to All View Cloud (AVC), a China home-appliance market research company. 

At the same pace as Japan's Sony and Sharp, Korea's Samsung and LG are working on their  Mini LED TV. There is also a list of Chinese brands coming up with their versions, including Skyworth, Xiaomi, Hisense, Changhong, and Konka. Only Skyworth and Samsung announced new Mini LED TV products this year so far.