Samsung’s ‘Quantum Dot’ Technology Faces against LG’s ‘M+’ Technology with UHD TV Market on the Line

Samsung and LG are going to face each other with different technologies in 2016 with UHD TV markets on the line. Samsung and LG will put out ‘Quantum Dot’ and ‘M+’ as their main technologies respectively.

It is estimated that Samsung Electronics will double the number of supplies of SUHD TV with Quantum Dot technology in 2016. Although it seems that number of TVs that will be shipped in 2016 will either stay the same or decrease, Samsung Electronics is planning to increase profitability and continue differentiating brand through premium strategies by increasing proportion of UHD TV.

Characteristic of Samsung Electronics’ SUHD TV is its higher color representation power through application of Quantum Dot Film into LCD panels. With Samsung electronics applying variety of technologies that improve quality, its SUHD TVs express clear resolution and natural colors as they are. Samsung Electronics had received positive responses this year by supplying relatively inexpensive SUHD TVs with CGEF, which is cheaper than Quantum Dot Film, at the same time. Samsung Electronics is planning to grab both profitability and market shares by placing both product lines with Quantum Dot Film and CGEF again strategically in 2016. 

LG Display will greatly increase proportion of ‘M+’ technology, which is UHD panel technology based on RGBW method that added W (white) pixel to previous R (red), G (green), and B (blue) pixels, in 2016. Although M+ panels only took about 16% in overall sales of UHD panels in 1st quarter, they were quickly replaced as major products as their proportions have surpassed 60% in 4th quarter.

Strength of M+ is its reduction of electricity consumption by 35%. LG Display proclaims that its TVs express higher quality after overcoming phenomena where screens become darker as pixels become dense due to increased resolution by adding W pixel. Although has been applying M+ to mostly low and mid-priced TVs this year, its goal is to apply it to main models by continuously developing related technologies.

According to market research company called SNE Research, South Korean display manufacturers shipped more than 11 million LCD panels for UHD TVs in 3rd quarter when they only shipped 5.7 million panels in 1st quarter. It analyzed that this number will surpass 12 million in 4th quarter, and this number corresponds to 18.4% of all LCD panels that will be shipped.

Market research company IHS is estimating that demands for UHD TV panels in 2016 will be 67 million, which is 67% greater than this year at 40 million. This is same as proportion of UHD panels being about 40% of all display markets.

Although proportion of display markets for UHD TV was only 2% in 2013, it grew to 12% in 2014 and quickly grew again to 25% this year.

South Korean display and TV manufacturers are focusing their strategies for LCD businesses in 2016 to UHD TV markets because they can differentiate themselves from Chinese businesses if they use technologies with outstanding color representation power, high resolution, and ability to express natural colors as they are.

Staff Reporter Bae, Okjin | [email protected]