LCDs surge as digital TV takes over

Taiwan shipped up to 361,000 sets of liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs in the first quarter of this year, due to strong market demand and increased orders from major global vendors, the semi-official Market Intelligence Center (市場情報中心) said in a report.

"Although the global LCD-TV market is limited at present, numerous countries are implementing digital TV broadcasts, and planned dates for the cessation of analog signals are fast approaching," the report said.

The replacement of CRT (cathode ray tube) TVs by flat-panel TVs, such as LCD-TV, is also accelerating, the report said.

This situation is favorable for Taiwan information and home appliance-makers.

Local TV brands including Sampo Corp (聲寶), Tatung Co (大同) and Teco Electric & Machinery Co (東元電機) collectively shipped around 407,500 LCD TV sets abroad last year. That translates into US$237.7 million in total export value, or US$583 a set.

Except for branded makers, most Taiwanese LCD-TV manufacturers are still reliant on the original equipment manufacturing (OEM) or original design manufacturing (ODM) business.

Thanks to the branded vendors' aggressive involvement early on, branded business accounted for 50 percent of shipment share in the first and second quarters of last year, the report said. But OEM and ODM businesses started to take the helm and outpaced branded shipments in the third quarter, following the influx of orders from international vendors, the report added.

According to the report, last year's second-quarter shipments were slightly higher than those for the first quarter -- but with more manufacturers stepping in and more international orders forthcoming, the third and fourth quarters saw business double.

LCD-TVs under 20 inches were the mainstream in the first half of 2003, with 15-inch and 17-inch sets the best sellers, the report said.