The rapid and increasing number of worldwide Ultra HD flat panel TV shipments over the past few years is contributing to the overall growth of the global flat panel TV market. UHD TV units account for more than one-third of the total flat panel TV units sold in 2017. ABI Research forecasts that UHD flat panel TV shipments will surpass 102 million in 2018, representing 44% of total global flat panel TV shipments.
The flat panel TV market has achieved over 85% penetration of global households, resulting in growth slowing expectedly. However, the switch from HD to UHD TV sets is expected to be the next key driver of the global flat panel TV market. In addition to increasing availability of UHD content on streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, pay TV service providers are also investing in UHD content.
Russian pay TV provider Tricolor TV recently launched UHD movie channels. US pay TV operators Verizon and Frontier Communications are also testing UHD video services at present. Analyst Khin Sandi Lynn commented:
“Better visual experience and availability of UHD content together with declining price points are driving UHD TV set shipments”.
Geographically, Asia-Pacific leads UHD unit shipments representing 37% of global unit shipments in 2018. The Asia-Pacific market is mainly driven by China, which offers several low-cost UHD models. North America and Western Europe are the regions with the highest UHD TV penetration at present. Combined shipments to the two regions will account for almost half of worldwide UHD flat panel TV unit shipments in 2018.
ABI expects that consumer demand for UHD flat panel TV sets will drive the market to grow at a CAGR of 17.3% to reach 194 million unit shipments in 2022. Lynn concluded:
“As expected, UHD is quickly becoming the standard for TV sales. Just like HD before it, hardware technology reached the market far before any content did, placing an impetus on content creators and providers to catch up, while also allowing for a time of transition.
While some satellite and cable providers are lagging behind major streaming services for UHD support and content, that too is shifting. As UHD becomes the norm, questions surrounding HDR and its many forms will become the focus”.
