8K to drive LED ultra-fine-pitch display market
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| 27 December 2019

As the demand for displays with high resolution and HDR capabilities continues to skyrocket, the LED fine-pitch display market is expected to reach 27% CAGR in the 2019-2023 period says research from TrendForce.

The 2020 Global LED Video Wall Market Outlook – Meeting Room, Sales Channel and Price Trend report defines fine-pitch and ultra-fine-pitch displays as the distance from the centre of one pixel to the centre of its adjacent pixel. For fine-pitch this equal or less than 2.5mm and for ultra-fine-pitch: pixel pitch this is equal or less than 1.1mm. In addition to the general demand for fine-pitch, the study also notes that ultra-fine-pitch displays have more momentum for growth because of their current lower shipment numbers.

TrendForce found that the $2.6 billion LED fine-pitch display market in 2019 registered year-on-year growth of 31% growth compared with 2018, giving a welcome kick to display manufacturers’ revenues. In terms of revenue ranking, the top seven manufacturers have cornered 66% share of the total market, with Chinese manufacturers occupying the top six spots. With the increasing demand for 8K resolution, technical improvements, and lowered costs, LED video wall applications are expected to expand from single-use cases to commercial uses, such as cinemas and home theatres Consequently, the market for LED fine-pitch displays is projected to grow at what the analyst calls an exponential rate.

Display products with pitches between 1.2mm and 1.6 mm products are the largest revenue drivers in the global LED fine-pitch display market and the analyst believes that the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the impending popularity of 8K resolution will serve as two major market drivers paving the way for LED displays with even finer pixel pitches. In addition to existing leaders in the fine-pitch display market, namely, Leyard and Unilumin Group, global players in the consumer electronics display market, such as Sony, Samsung, and LG, have now begun manufacturing fine-pitch displays, with even finer, 1.0mm and below, pixel pitch display products. Some of these products include Mini LED and Micro LED displays.

TrendForce forecasts the so-called P1.2–P1.6 fine-pitch and ≦P1.1 ultra-fine-pitch displays to have the highest momentum for growth among all product segments. This market is seeing new entrants in the form of LCD panel manufacturers, TV brands, projector makers, and even upstream component suppliers. For example, Taiwan-based LED chip manufacturer Epistar have partnered with LED video wall market leader Leyard in an attempt to reduce manufacturing costs of Mini LED and Micro LED displays through advancements in semi-mass transfer technology and mass transfer technology respectively.

The analyst concluded that since manufacturing ultra-fine-pitch displays and LED video walls with high resolution, HDR, and even lower costs is currently a common goal of LED display manufacturers, TrendForce forecasts an increasingly competitive landscape for the industry.