Samsung gradually withdraws from the LCD market, panel double tigers will play important roles in the supply chain

Samsung Group recently announced the list of the top 100 supply chains in 2020. A total of 6 Taiwanese manufacturers are on the list, the same as last year. Among them, AUO and Innolux supply Samsung LCD panels. As Samsung Display (SDC) has gradually withdrawn from the LCD market in recent years and expanded its presence in the OLED market, the role of Taiwanese manufacturers is expected to become more important.

In the past, Samsung’s LCD panels were mainly provided by its subsidiary Samsung Display. However, due to the rise of mainland China’s panel industry in recent years, the LCD industry has suffered from price-cutting competition. Therefore, Samsung Display has also decided to gradually withdraw from the industry and shift to the development of OLED. It has also expanded LCD cooperation with Taiwan and mainland panel manufacturers, including AUO, Innolux and BOE.

Panel Double Tiger has continued to adjust its operating structure in recent years and expand its presence in the high-end panel market. AUO is currently the supplier of Samsung's high-end TV panels, supplying Samsung 8K TV and other panels.

As panel prices benefit from long-distance business opportunities, Stimulated by the stay-at-home economy, prices have stabilized since the middle of last year, which has also led Korean panel manufacturers to postpone LCD plant closure plans several times. In the middle of this year, it was rumored that Samsung Display’s LCD plant closure plan will be extended to next year. However, it is observed that Samsung Display currently has only one Gen 8 LCD plant left in South Korea that is still maintaining production. It is a foregone conclusion that the Korean factory will withdraw from the LCD market.

Market expectations are that in the future, the LCD panels required by Samsung will be mainly shared by mainland and Taiwanese manufacturers. Taiwanese manufacturers have maintained good supply chain partnerships with Korean manufacturers in the past and are expected to further play an important role in Samsung's supply chain in the future.

According to the list of the top 100 supply chains released by Samsung last year, in addition to the panel double tigers, the backlight module manufacturer Zhongguang Electronics also provides Samsung backlight module products, and others include MediaTek, Jianding, Zhichao, etc.