AUO made a striking impression at CES 2024 with its Micro LED automotive technology. Over the past year, the company strengthened its mobility segment through its merger with BHTC, establishing the AUO Mobility Solution Corporation (AMS), a wholly owned subsidiary. As the company prepares for CES 2025, it continues to expand its smart mobility portfolio with innovative solutions.

China's government has initiated a new wave of subsidies under the "Trade-In for New" policy for televisions and consumer electronics, effectively boosting TV demand. However, compared to the Mid-Autumn Festival and the National Day Holiday, the sales volume in the latest Single's Day shopping festival was lower than expected. Still, the surge in high-end TVs such as ultra-large screens and Mini LED backlight models significantly lifted overall sales revenue.

Japan Display Inc. (JDI) anticipates its eleventh consecutive year of net losses and plans to pivot from displays to growth sectors such as semiconductor packaging substrates and AI data centers, though the transition will require time.

TCL has officially entered the inkjet-printed OLED market with the launch of its APEX brand, while also commencing mass production of its 21.6-inch medical OLED panels. Announced at the Global Display Tech-ecosystem Conference (DTC 2024) in Guangzhou, the panels feature 4K resolution, brightness levels of 140/350 nits, and are set to ship on November 10.

Winstar Display, an innovative display solutions provider, has extended its order visibility to the second quarter of 2025. The company has secured significant replenishment orders from existing clients and integrated into key domestic and international supply chains. These efforts are driving a pipeline of large-scale projects anticipated to contribute to revenue growth by 2025.

The overall progress of Chinese smartphone brands adopting OLED panels is rapidly advancing. Industry experts predict that by 2025, OLED will dominate the smartphone panel market, with only the lowest-tier models continuing to use traditional LCD panels.

LG Display (LGD) has revealed a groundbreaking prototype stretchable screen capable of expanding its stretch ratio from 20% to an impressive 50%, pushing the boundaries of flexible display technology. This innovation aims to achieve "ultimate freedom" by enabling screens to stretch, fold, and twist with ease.

Royole Technologies, a pioneer in foldable display technology and the creator of the world's first commercial foldable smartphone has declared bankruptcy. Despite its early lead and innovative products, the company struggled financially, leading to its demise.

LG Display (LGD) will invest an additional US$1 billion in Vietnam over the next five years to strengthen operations at its Haiphong OLED module factory, marking a significant step in its transition from LCD to OLED technology.

The combination of promotional events like Double Eleventh Day in China and Black Friday sales in Europe and the US, coupled with new smartphone launches in November, has driven a rebound in end-user demand. This recovery has improved demand for upstream display panels, helping stabilize overall panel prices. However, certain types of smartphone panels continue to experience price declines.

As AI technology advances, demand for electronic product upgrades is boosting panel shipments, with OLED adoption and niche applications driving growth in the display industry. The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) forecasts Taiwan's display panel industry will reach NT$791.8 billion (approx. US$24.3 billion) in 2024, up 2% year-over-year, and NT$812.9 billion in 2025, up 2.6%. Globally, the display panel market is expected to be valued at US$118 billion in 2024, a 9.8% yearly increase, and US$124.5 billion by 2025, up 5.5%.

China-based BOE Technology has decided to invest in a wafer fab in Beijing, marking its first foray into the chipmaking business. This move comes as China is expected to rapidly expand its wafer fab industry, potentially flooding the global market with more semiconductor production.

Touch panel manufacturer GIS has faced significant operational challenges in 2024. Despite a rebound in consolidated revenue during the third quarter, the company's product mix resulted in a reduced gross profit margin. As GIS's market share in fingerprint recognition continues to expand, the company expects overall performance in 2025 to surpass that of 2024, with fingerprint recognition revenue projected to exceed 10% for the first time.

South Korea's display industry faces new uncertainties following Donald Trump's return to the US presidency. While Samsung Display and LG Display maintain their OLED technology leadership, industry watchers are closely monitoring the potential impacts of heightened US-China tensions.

Apple's planned release of the OLED MacBook Air faces potential delays, primarily due to pricing challenges and market dynamics. The transition from LCD to OLED panels significantly increases production costs, and Apple believes this upgrade alone may not provide sufficient value proposition for consumers.

As the display panel industry enters its traditional off-season following the peak inventory demand period, major manufacturers reported lower revenues for October. AUO experienced a nearly 20% decline from September, while Innolux saw a 10% month-over-month decrease.

Himax Technologies exceeded third-quarter 2024 expectations, fueled by strong automotive IC revenue from Chinese orders. Despite a revenue decline and lower gross margin, the company remains optimistic about growth in the automotive, AI, WLO, and OLED sectors amid market uncertainties.

South Korean media TheElec reports, citing Sigmaintell data, that OLED TV panel shipments are set to reach 6.48 million units in 2024, representing a 22% increase from the 5.3 million units in 2023. This growth comes as OLED's market penetration is expected to edge up by 0.4 pp to 2.6%, from 2.2% last year, even as LCD panel shipments remain steady at 230 million units.

Novatek posted strong revenue growth in the third quarter of 2024, fueled by high inventory demand for mobile OLED DDIs. However, gross margin slipped from the previous quarter, mainly due to price adjustments for specific chips, rising gold costs, and lower non-recurring engineering (NRE) revenue.

Taiwan is gradually positioning itself as a global leader in Micro LED development, driven by extensive investments in core areas like epitaxial wafers, TFT substrates, mass transfer, and full-color display technologies. However, with OLED technology advancing rapidly, Taiwan must redouble innovation efforts to sustain the competitiveness of Micro LED technology.

Donald Trump's potential return as the US President has captured global attention. Peter Chen, chairperson of Qisda, notes that from an economic and industrial perspective, Trump's anticipated presidency is expected to boost the US stock market through his proposed quantitative-erasing policies. Lower interest rates and the resulting capital influx could positively impact the economy.

NexChip and Samsung Foundry have emerged as the dominant players in the display driver IC (DDIC) market for the third quarter of 2024, according to the latest insights from Omdia's Display Driver IC Market Tracker. NexChip has captured the largest market share in the large-area display and LCD driver IC segments, while Samsung Foundry leads the AMOLED DDIC market.

Polarizer manufacturer Cheng Mei Materials Technology (CMMT) has stepped up its deployment in high-value product segments to alleviate the impact of oversupply in the LCD market which has prompted panel makers to shut down some of their fabs.

Apple is strengthening its collaboration with China's display industry, aiming to lower production costs and reduce reliance on primary South Korean suppliers, Samsung Display (SDC) and LG Display (LGD). As Chinese OLED technology progresses, this shift is capturing significant attention in the industry.

Samsung Display (SDC) plans to accelerate the production of its 8.6G OLED panels for IT applications, which will first be utilized in Samsung Electronics' notebook products.