LCD TV price to remarkably decline from 2007
As TFT LCD TV is expected to become a main item of the flat TV world market in 2007, the year 2007 will be the first year in which competition between four countries -- Korea, Japan, Taiwan and China -- begins in earnest.
Despite such full-scale competition, the market's circumstance is forecast to be not so good. Since such a price standpoint is not good, a possibility that the price will decline is high in 2007. This is according to New Growth Engine Display Center Director Kim Yong-bae who concurrently serves as a Professor at Konkuk University.
In an exclusive interview with the Korea IT Times regarding New Year Display industry outlook, the Director said: "The year 2007 will be the first year of a new competition composition as corporations alone to be able to endure such low price circumstance will survive." In conjunction with this, Professor Kim forecasts, "From the year 2007 also, LCD TV prices will be popularized up to US$1,000~1,500," so that general consumers can buy it in earnest without great burden.
Main items in 2007
Regarding Korean LCD TV makers' corresponding strategy, Kim emphasizes: "Samsung LCD division and LG Philips LCD have to overcome difficulties about production and sales during the tentative period for beginning in earnest," adding that Korea's LCD TV makers have potential in terms of the prime cost.
However, the Director is concerned about the imbalance of manufacturing and supply, explaining that already Samsung Electronics and LG Philips have equipped with their large-sized manufacturing lines respectively by means of large-sized investment.
As everybody knows, Samsung and LG Philips are equipping the 8th and 7th generation manufacturing lines in Tangjeong and Paju, Korea respectively. Providing domestic LCD TV makers can put their productivity in orbit with priority given to 40 inch LCD TVs, Kim explained that they will be able to keep up with the prime cost reduction.
In a nutshell, he notes: "When triple time will be congruous such as manufacturing facility's investment, price down and market's expansion, LCD TV makers can sell their LCD TV product." In that regard, Professor Kim anticipates: "Production technology innovation and component materials's cost reduction will be one of the main tasks for either larger corporations or smaller supply companies in 2007."
Production, supply imbalance
Concerning New Growth Engine Display Center's New Year Plan in 2007, Director Kim commits himself to do his best in continuing the core technology development with tasks alone, whose business prospect is high from July, 2007 when the second stage of New Growth Engine Display Center's five years plan until 2008 will start.
The director, who diagnoses that New Growth Engine Display Center's projects are entering into their maturation stage right now, further commits himself to continue its research about commercialization. With regards to propulsion outcomes to date, Kim assessed that New Growth Engine Display Center carried out without difficulty as planned in 2006.
Concretely, Samsung SDI began the company's entry into the smallsized OLED market and constructed a base of large-sized OLED manufacturing technology perfectly, according to Kim. In addition, the Professor explained that new manufacturing technologies for LCD cost reduction are being developed and completed in large numbers.
Besides, Korea's display industry prepared its base for preoccupying digital TV market thanks to pilot product development success for the first time in the world in LCD, PDP, and AM-OLED, three core product group. The 100 inch LCD, 102 inch PDP and 40 inch AM-OLED have succeeded in their pilot product development respectively on March 2006, December 2004, and May 2005.
Furthermore, through TFT-LCD lowprice innovation technology development, Korea's display business circles have secured their competitiveness in the world market and completed localization development in relation to liquid crystal injection equipment, the core equipment of display manufacturing process that generates a turnover effect amounting to 25 billion won (US$27.2 million).
Tasks in 2007
As for a plan in the coming years, the New Growth Engine Display Center will beef up competitive edges through process innovation technology development propulsion in the interests of super lowprice TFT-LCD actualization, Kim said.
On the top of that, through the core material as well as facility localization for the purpose of large-size AM-OLED commercialization, Korea will usher the future display market including 40 inchnotch commercialization development in 2008, the Professor forecasts.
Kim pledges: "The New Growth Engine Display Center will support intensively the future promising display core technologies like AM-OLED, Flexible Display and 3D etc. through strategy technology-centered R&D system in the years to come."
Anyway, Korea display industry's vision is to maintain the number one position in display production with LCD/PDP's super large-sized, low-price actualization and technology development, and OLED's early commercialization of a next-generation display.
World market share will become higher from 34.8% in 2004 through 42.0% in 2008 to 44.1% in 2012. Korea's technology level also in comparison with advanced countries will become higher from 80% in 2004, through 90% in 2008, and to 100% in the forthcoming 2012, according to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy (MOCIE).
In the background of production technology's superiority, Korea's display industry will secure the world best technology power by concentrating next next-generation technology development alongside of the core material and equipment development, Kim said.
Dashing forward for component material development
In regard of the future's display product as well as technology, the professor anticipates that Super Light LCD technology seems to be the most influential by his opinion.
He advises: "In order for the Korean display industry to occupy the world market, 2007 should be the first year to secure market with differentiating production technique plus beefing up component material's technology." In particular, larger corporations and smaller companies must dash forward for component material development, he concluded his remarks.
