According to the Digitimes news website LG Display (LGD) plans to ramp up the production capacity of OLED TV panels at its Gen 8.5 line in order to meet demand from new clients including Loewe, Arcelik and Hisense, said unnamed industry sources.
LGD's Gen 8.5 line currently is reported to have a production capacity of 60,000 glass substrates a month, and the company plans to increase capacity to 70,000 substrates a month in the second half of 2018.
Although current OLED TV shipments and price/performance ratios are hard to compare with those of LCD TVs, the growth rate of OLED TVs has clearly exceeded that of LCD models, the industry sources added.
Global shipments of OLED TVs reached 510,000 units in the first quarter of 2018, increasing 127% from a year earlier, according to Sigmaintell Consulting.
While LG Electronics is currently accounting for 70% of the global OLED TV market, other brands including Sony, Philips and Panasonic are also ramping up OLED TV shipments and could grow faster.
OLED TVs currently account for about 1% of the global TV market with the ratio likely to reach over 2% in 2020, according to an industry estimate.