In sharp contrast with the deteriorating display industry in Japan, my country has become an important panel production base in the world with the successive commissioning of many high-generation LCD panel production lines in China. However, just as my country's display industry is accelerating its impact on the global peak, Hon Hai's acquisition of Sharp has made my country's "last mile" more difficult. Under such circumstances, how should our country face new challenges?
In recent years, my country's LCD panel industry has risen rapidly. By 2016, TFT-LCD panel shipments by area have reached the second place in the world, with a global market share of more than 20 percent , and the overall industry scale has exceeded 300 billion yuan, basically reversing the unfavorable situation of TV panels relying on imports. With the vigorous deployment of panel manufacturers such as BOE, China Star Optoelectronics, and CLP Panda, China's TFT-LCD production capacity is expected to surpass South Korea from 2018 to 2019 and become the world's number one. However, with the rapid development of my country's flat panel display industry today, the global panel industry pattern has quietly undergone tremendous changes.
The strategy of the Korean factory has changed, and LCD technology is facing severe challenges
From the perspective of display technology, South Korean manufacturer Mou Zujin has fully deployed OLED. After selling a 5th generation line to my country's Truly, Samsung is expected to close half of the 7th generation LCD production line at the Tangjing plant in South Korea in October, and the last 6th generation LCD production line at the Cheonan plant will also be closed at the scheduled time. As a result, Samsung Display's LCD production line will only have half of the 7th generation line, 2 8th generation lines of Tangjing Factory and the 8th generation line of Suzhou, my country. Although these production lines are used to produce TV panels, they will gradually be converted to OLED production lines in the future. Samsung Display will gradually close most of the LCD production lines with low production efficiency, and its original intention is to gradually withdraw from the LCD market.
In fact, the development momentum of OLED panels in recent years is very fierce, especially in the small and medium-sized market, which poses a severe challenge to LCD panels. According to IHS data, although liquid crystal display technology is still the dominant technology in the display industry, AMOLED screen shipments in 2016 will increase by 40 percent from the same period last year to 395 million units, and its operating income is also expected to increase by 25 percent .
For the mobile phone OLED panel market, data shows that Samsung Display shipped more than 80 million units in the first quarter of the year, ranking first in the world, with a year-on-year increase of over 50 percent . Among the more than 50 new smartphones released in the first quarter, nearly 1/3 adopted AMOLED screens. Last year, the largest shipment volume was LCD mobile phone panels. BOE ranked first in total shipment volume, but this year it was Samsung's AMOLED panel.
In the large-size OLED market, South Korea's LGD is also accelerating its layout. At present, LGD has invested in two 8.5-generation OLED production lines, and another 8.5-generation line will be put into production in the first half of next year. By then, the production capacity of OLED TVs will reach 1.5 million to 2 million units. In addition, LGD has further investment plans for OLED panel production lines.
South Korean manufacturers are speeding up the deployment of OLED display technology, which should not be underestimated. At present, panel manufacturers in my country have invested heavily in the construction of LCD panel production lines. For the layout of new display technologies, panel manufacturers in my country should also attach great importance to them. In the window period of technological innovation in the panel industry, the layout of high-end technology is also very important.
Hon Hai acquires Sharp to reshape the global industrial landscape
From the perspective of the manufacturer's structure, Hon Hai's acquisition of Sharp may cause changes to the entire display industry landscape. Sharp has huge panel production capacity and technology patents. The acquisition of Sharp's Hon Hai will produce a strong chemical reaction, and the industrial chain will be more complete, making its overall competitiveness further enhanced, and narrowing the distance with the world's top companies, especially Samsung . In the field of TV panels, with the mass production of high-generation lines in 2017, Hon Hai's production capacity will be greatly increased, and its market share will reach 20 percent , further narrowing the gap with Samsung, LG, and BOE. In the field of small size, Hon Hai can directly obtain Sharp's existing LTPS production capacity, and it will further deploy its LTPS production line, which is bound to promote the increase of the entire LTPS production capacity. It is worth noting that OLED panels are positioned by Hon Hai as the backbone of Sharp's reconstruction, and mass production of OLEDs is planned in 2018. To this end, Hon Hai plans to invest 200 billion yen in OLED panels, hoping to catch up with Samsung and other Korean manufacturers with large-scale investment.
Nowadays, the global display industry is showing a stage of poor competition. The combination of panel manufacturers and the rapid development of new display technologies have made my country's panel manufacturers face greater challenges. What is gratifying is that in the field of small and medium size, BOE, Huaxing Optoelectronics, Tianma and other manufacturers continue to accelerate the layout of LTPS production lines, and some AMOLED panels such as Hehui Optoelectronics and Tianma have begun to ship and are used in mobile phones. In the field of large-size panels, my country BOE has already deployed its 10.5-generation LCD panel production line, and China Star Optoelectronics is also expected to follow up. In the field of large-size OLED, Huaxing Optoelectronics has been conducting research and development on printed OLED technology. If real breakthroughs can be made in RD and mass production, my country will gain the right to speak in the field of large-size OLED and break LGD's position in this field. Monopoly.
At present, the display industry is facing great challenges, such as overcapacity and technology substitution. Challenges also mean opportunities. Although products such as flexible displays, VR displays, and smart mirrors do not seem to be very mature now, these new supplies are constantly emerging. These are one of the most important development opportunities facing the display industry. my country's display industry has already possessed the leading foundation and conditions. First of all, from the market point of view, my country is the world's largest consumer market for electronic information products and the most important manufacturing base; secondly, from the perspective of technology, my country has entered the international advanced level in terms of the accumulation of TFT technology; finally, from the industrial chain It can be seen that my country has begun to cultivate a group of upstream supporting enterprises with core independent intellectual property rights, and at the same time, it has partially realized materials and equipment supporting.
However, in the face of these opportunities, there are still certain constraints for the rapid development of my country's display industry. First, the collaborative innovation of our industrial chain has not been established with the panel as the backbone of the collaborative innovation model. Second, the government's investment efforts still need to be strengthened and sustained.
The so-called collaborative innovation is to deploy an innovation chain around the industrial chain, including upstream materials, midstream device panels, and downstream terminal applications. As of 2015, my country's investment in the display industry is close to 500 billion yuan, of which more than 400 billion yuan is panel investment, and the investment in upstream materials and equipment is less than 100 billion yuan. From this data, it can be seen that my country's industrial chain is still Not strong enough, so the main work that our country will do next is to deploy innovation around the industrial chain. In addition, my country must also arrange capital chains around the innovation chain. In 2015, my country has 22 panel production lines that have been mass-produced. In the future, whether it is government funding or enterprise innovation and development funding, it must be in panel technology. , With the panel backbone enterprises as the core, extending to the upstream materials and equipment.
"Four Departments" strategic route to respond to the new pattern of the display industry
Although LCD panels are a highly technology-intensive and capital-intensive industry, manufacturers are still enthusiastic about investing and building factories in recent years, which makes my country's large-size LCD panel market thrive and flourish. Hon Hai's acquisition of Sharp is a blockbuster news for the display industry this year. This acquisition will have a certain impact on my country's panel industry. After Hon Hai acquires Sharp, it will mass produce OLEDs before 2018. Although some people think that Sharp did not have the accumulation of OLED before, and that Sharp is almost a late old man, it is not to be feared, but I don't think so. In recent years, Japanese consumer electronics companies, including Sharp, have encountered huge difficulties, but Sharp's technical strength cannot be underestimated, and the momentum of late development is still very strong. Sharp owns the key technologies and patents of LTPS and IGZO. LTPS and IGZO are the most popular technologies when OLED has not yet become popular. It can occupy the strategic high ground of the supply chain of important customers such as Apple and also make some technical reserves for OLED. . After acquiring Sharp, I think that the proportion of Hon Hai's 5.5-generation line and above production capacity will increase to 20 percent this year, re-opening the gap with BOE, and it is almost the same as the second Samsung.
In this case, China Star Optoelectronics will firmly develop in accordance with the existing "Four Steps" strategy. Huaxing Optoelectronics should form advantages in efficiency, production capacity, yield, operation, products, etc., and strengthen its strength in the development of new applications, patent operations, including participation in standard formulation, and finally achieve the practical layout of industrial chain integration and ecological integration. It is the strategic development path of Huaxing. In Huaxing Optoelectronics' plan for the next five years, the development route including AMOLED and flexible display is included.
In the future, South Korea, Japan, and my country's Taiwan region will avoid head-on competition with us, that is, they will not compete directly in the 8.5-generation line TFT-LCD field, but will develop in other fields. However, despite the rapid development momentum of my country's LCD panel, it is okay to rely on group combat, and the strength of individual soldiers is not strong. The flat panel display industry has indeed given us great opportunities, but it also faces very big challenges. my country's national display panel industry has both challenges and opportunities. Now we are only gradually becoming a global leader in "big". "Go further.
The global panel industry forms a new "iron triangle" pattern
Hon Hai originally did the OEM of the TV business, but the current scale is not very large. In 2015, the market share of the Hon Hai's TV OEM business was about 11 percent , and the customer structure is relatively simple. work. After Hon Hai acquires Sharp, it will integrate Sharp's business group as electronic components, which is bound to have a profound impact on Hon Hai Group, and its strength will be significantly improved.
First of all, in terms of operating income, Hon Hai and Sharp's operating income reached US163 billion in 2015, ranking among the top three global high-tech companies, second only to Apple and Samsung.
Secondly, from the perspective of large-size panel layout, Innolux's main focus is 40-inch to 65-inch products, while Sharp basically focuses on products above 60 inches. After Hon Hai's acquisition of Sharp, it will form an effective complement in the field of LCD TV panels. Its entire product line is more complete, and customer resources can be further integrated and optimized. It is worth noting that Sharp has always had close cooperation with China Electronics, and Hon Hai Group is also expected to further strengthen its cooperation with China Electronics in the future.
