Key Trends in the Small- and Medium-sized TFT LCD Panel Industry, 2008

Abstract

Unusually for the small- and medium-sized TFT LCD industry, 2007 saw shortages of supply in some panel sizes. Looking ahead to 2008, manufacturers of small- and medium-sized TFT LCD panel will be investing in new-generation production lines to make up for the shortfall in production capacity. Small- and medium-sized TFT LCD panel is mainly used in consumer electronics products, so there is an extremely wide range of panel sizes and applications, including new applications that are only just starting to emerge. The small- and medium-sized panel market has thus developed along different lines from the large-sized panel market, where IT products account for the largest share. With a considerable amount of new large-sized panel production capacity scheduled to come on-stream in 2009, the allocation of production capacity for small- and medium-sized panel production will become even more complex and challenging.