According to IHS Markit, due to the popularity of flexible AMOLED displays, revenues are expected to reach $3.2 billion in the third quarter of 2017. This will exceed the revenue for rigid AMOLED panels, which are estimated to reach $3.0 billion in the same quarter.
With smartphone manufacturers planning to use flexible AMOLED displays for their top-priced devices, revenues are expected to grow over 150% compared to 2016. Rigid AMOLED panels however, now mainly used for mid-range smartphones, are forecast to decline in revenue terms by 2%, compared to last year.
Jerry Kang, principal analyst of display research, pointed out that the cost of making flexible AMOLED panels is much higher than that of rigid AMOLED, but it is possible that costs will fall below that of rigid panels in the future, as manufacturing yield rates improve.
