QLED and OLED TV shipments are expected to hit an all-time high as TV set manufacturers prefer to ship large, highly profitable TVs.

TrendForce recently forecasted that annual QLED TV shipments in 2021 would reach 11.02 million units, a 22.4% year-on-year increase. Additionally, OLED TV shipments in 2021 are expected to reach 7.1 million units, an 80% year-over-year increase, with both product categories expected to break their shipment records this year.

This outlook is analyzed to be due to the fact that TV set manufacturers have reduced shipments of small and medium-sized TVs and preferred shipments of larger TVs with higher profitability due to the continuous price increases of TV panels and the shortage and price increases of semiconductor components required for TV set manufacturing.

As vaccinations increase in Europe and the US, demand for TVs driven by the stay-at-home economy is likely to slow, and TV panel costs remain high with no signs of slowing down.

Accordingly, TV brands are expanding product sizes and improving specifications to minimize financial losses from sales of relatively low-profit small and medium-sized TVs and maximize profits.

Given the reduction in less profitable models, TV brands' annual shipments are likely to see a corresponding decline.

Accordingly, TrendForce predicts that total TV shipments this year will reach 220 million units, a 1.4% year-on-year increase.

Samsung's Neo QLED series is expected to drive annual shipments of mini LED-backlit TVs to 3 million units in 2021.

Profitability in small and medium-sized TVs has declined sharply this year, but market leader Samsung Electronics has not only lowered the retail prices of its QLED products to attract consumers during the replacement period between existing and new models, but has also launched a new Neo QLED lineup featuring mini LED backlighting and the following resolutions:

From UHD to 8K, Samsung's QLED TV shipments are expected to increase 17% year-over-year to 9.1 million units this year. This is the largest annual shipment ever.

In particular, Samsung's lineup includes around 1.5 million Mini LED-backlit TVs, primarily with 65-inch and 55-inch displays, which account for 33% and 30% of the company's total Mini LED-backlit TV shipments, respectively, while the ultra-large 75-inch model accounts for 17%.

Meanwhile, TCL launched a relatively affordable 75-inch Mini LED-backlit TV in 2020, followed by a 65-inch model this year. TCL's annual shipments of Mini LED-backlit TVs in 2021 are expected to reach 800,000 units.

In addition to the two brands mentioned above, Xiaomi and LG are also expected to enter the mini LED backlight TV market. Therefore, TrendForce forecasts a total annual shipment of 3 million mini LED backlight TVs in 2021.

As brands expand their production lines for OLED TVs, LG and Sony are expected to hold 80% of the OLED market share.

Currently, OLED TVs are attracting consumer attention in the high-end TV market due to their excellent picture quality through high saturation and contrast ratio.

As LG Display adds OLED capacity through its 8.5th-generation production line in Guangzhou this year, OLED TV supply is expected to increase and OLED TV sizes will diversify.

Furthermore, with the strategic reduction in OLED panel costs significantly narrowing the gap between OLED panel costs and the costs of comparable products, brands are expected to expand their OLED TV product lineups, leading to another record-breaking OLED TV shipments this year.

LCD panels are evolving to offer a cost advantage over OLED panels, allowing TV brands to increase profitability.

In terms of TV brands, LG Electronics maintains the top spot in the industry with over 50% market share in OLED TV shipments this year, while Sony ranks second with 20% market share.

Other Japanese brands such as Panasonic and Sharp, as well as Chinese brands such as Skyworth, Hisense, and Xiaomi, are also expected to see increased shipments in the future.